HEALTH

Departmental Data Protection

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of (a) data loss and (b) breaches of confidentiality occurred in his Department in 2011.

Simon Burns: The Department requires staff to report losses of personal or business sensitive data, and breaches of personal confidentiality.
	No data losses or breaches of confidentiality have been recorded for 2011.

Departmental Food

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of food purchased by his Department was produced in the UK in each of the last five years.

Simon Burns: The Department has a contract with Quadrant Catering Limited to provide services to the Department's staff restaurants and for hospitality services. Quadrant Catering is part of Compass Group UK and Ireland.
	Data are only available for the last two years, which show the proportion of food sourced from United Kingdom producers is:
	2010-11: 20%
	2011-12 to date: 38%.
	With regards to the sourcing from UK producers, our catering suppliers have provided the following information:
	“We have defined British as guaranteed British provenance which can be fully traced back to the source, i.e. food that has been grown and harvested or born, bred and slaughtered in the UK. Where the product is of mixed origin we have not defined this as sourced from the UK.”
	Where it is possible, our catering supplier will use local produce and can confirm that:
	100% of their fresh beef is British;
	100% of their fresh pork joints is British;
	100% of their fresh milk is British;
	100% of shell eggs are UK sourced and Lion marked; and
	all of their fresh potatoes and root vegetables are sourced from UK when in season.

Departmental Training

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many away days his Department has held since May 2010; what the location was of each such away day; how many staff attended; and what the cost was of each such event.

Simon Burns: The Department and its agencies are strongly committed to developing their staff and equipping them with the skills, knowledge and expertise they need to carry out their work roles effectively. Away days and team building events make a significant contribution to such development.
	Away days and team building activities are typically arranged by individual teams. No central records of these events are kept so extracting the requested data would incur disproportionate costs.

Diabetes

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of progress in implementing the National Service Framework for diabetes; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what progress he has made on the National Service Framework for diabetes; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: “Six years on: delivering the Diabetes National Service Framework”, the last review of the National Services Framework (NSF) was published in 2010—a copy has been placed in the Library. Predictably, there have been developments in the evidence for optimal care for people with diabetes since the publication of the NSF for Diabetes in 2001 and, with this in mind, further reviews will be dependent on other influences such as the Quality Standard for Diabetes (2011). Our intention is to wait for the National Audit Office to publish its report on the management of adult diabetes services in the national health service before considering next steps.

Drugs: Counterfeit Manufacturing

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to prevent the sale of counterfeit medicine.

Simon Burns: Counterfeit medicines rarely reach patients through the regulated supply chain and are more commonly available to consumers via unregulated websites. Although no fatalities have been attributed to counterfeit medicine in the United Kingdom, it is acknowledged that all counterfeit medicines are dangerous and pose a risk to patient health.
	In response, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), an executive agency of the Department of Health with responsibility for regulation of medicines for human use and medical devices, has developed and implemented a comprehensive anti-counterfeiting strategy to combat the threat posed by the infiltration of counterfeit medicines and devices into the UK market.
	A number of public awareness campaigns have been delivered, both by MHRA and also by MHRA in conjunction with other stakeholders such as the General Pharmaceutical Council and patient groups.
	The MHRA monitors the internet for websites operating within the UK supplying medicines illegally, makes test purchases from these sites and, as a result, has successfully prosecuted a number of individuals. All referrals involving suspected counterfeit medicines are investigated thoroughly and necessary action is taken to protect public health. Enforcement activity is closely co-ordinated with other enforcement authorities around the world and MHRA regularly engages in international initiatives to tackle this issue.
	The MHRA also chairs an anti-counterfeit stakeholders group, with representatives from, among others, UK police forces, regulators and industry, where intelligence concerning counterfeit medicines is regularly reviewed and assessed.
	New requirements for wholesalers and distributors of medicines will be introduced by the falsified medicines directive in January 2013. Further proposals affecting the pharmaceutical industry are being considered as part of the UK supply chain review.

Gynaecology: Medical Treatments

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that women with symptomatic fibroids have access to a range of treatments, including Uterine Artery Embolisation.

Anne Milton: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence published guidelines on Uterine Artery Embolisation for fibroids in November 2010. It is for the national health service to take account of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines when determining treatment options.
	The NHS Choices website:
	www.nhs.uk
	includes detailed information for patients on fibroids, treatment options and where treatment is available. Information for patients with fibroids can be found at:
	www.nhs.uk/conditions/fibroids/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Health Services: Greater London

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much NHS North West London has budgeted for (a) establishing the eight clinical commissioning groups, (b) staff redundancies at primary care trusts and (c) hospital or other NHS service merger or closure proposals in North West London in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: This information is not centrally held. The hon. Member may wish to approach the relevant local national health service organisations.

Hinchingbrooke Hospital: Food

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Hinchingbrooke hospital is required to comply with Government buying standards for food and catering services.

Simon Burns: Hinchingbrooke Health Care NHS Trust is required to comply with the same laws, regulations and standards that all other national health service trusts are required to follow.
	NHS trusts are encouraged to adopt the Government buying standards for food and catering services through the 2011-12 NHS operating framework.

Hospitals: Greater London

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the waiting times were for (a) private and (b) NHS patients for diagnosis and treatment of (i) cancer, (ii) orthopaedic and (iii) cardiovascular conditions at (A) Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and (B) King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in the latest period for which figures are available.

Simon Burns: Statistics covering waiting times for privately commissioned services are not held centrally.
	National health service patients referred urgently with a suspicion of cancer by their general practitioner should, if diagnosed, expect to begin their first definitive treatment within two months of referral unless it is clinically inappropriate or the patient elects to delay their care. In the most recent period for which statistics are available (Quarter 2, 2011-12) achievement against this requirement was as follows:
	
		
			 Number of patients urgently referred and subsequently treated for cancer 
			 Organisation Number of patients, urgently referred and subsequently treated for cancer Number treated within two months (62 days) Percentage treated within two months (62 days) 
			 Guy's and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust 252 199.5 79.2 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 94 88.5 94.1 
		
	
	Such information as is collected for referral to treatment (RTT) times for the trusts requested are as follows:
	
		
			 Admitted pathways (patients who started treatment during November as an admission to hospital) 
			 Provider name Treatment function Average (median) waiting time (in weeks) 95th percentile waiting time (in weeks) Percentage within 18 weeks 
			 Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust Total (all treatment functions) 5.6 34.7 82.9 
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 11.5 41.1 72.0 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery (1)n/a (1)n/a (1)n/a 
			  Cardiology 6.6 21.9 92.3 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Total (all treatment functions) 6.6 22.7 90.3 
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 12.0 32.3 80.7 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery (2)— (2)— 87.2 
			  Cardiology 9.8 20.3 93.5 
		
	
	
		
			 Non admitted pathways (patients who started treatment during November not involving an admission to hospital) 
			 Provider name Treatment function Average (median) waiting time (in weeks) 95th percentile waiting time (in weeks) Percentage within 18 weeks 
			 Guy's and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust Total (all treatment functions) 3.2 17.7 95.3 
		
	
	
		
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 5.7 28.2 87.9 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery (1)n/a (1)n/a (1)n/a 
			  Cardiology 5.2 14.3 98.0 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Total (all treatment functions) 4.2 17.1 97.8 
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 1.8 15.9 98.0 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery (2)— (2)— 100.0 
			  Cardiology 9.4 17.7 97.4 
		
	
	
		
			 Incomplete Pathways (patients waiting to start treatment at the end of November) 
			 Provider name Treatment function Average (median) waiting time (in weeks) 95th percentile waiting time (in weeks) Percentage within 18 weeks 
			 Guy's and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust' Total (all treatment functions) 6.2 36.0 83.6 
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 9.2 44.2 71.8 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery (1)n/a (1)n/a (1)n/a 
			  Cardiology 3.7 16.2 96.8 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Total (all treatment functions) 6.0 17.4 96.5 
			  Trauma and Orthopaedics 6.4 17.7 96.1 
			  Cardiothoracic Surgery 5.9 23.3 84.7 
			  Cardiology 6.4 20.0 93.5 
			 (1 )No pathways for this treatment function. (2 )Median and 95th Percentile waiting times cannot be accurately estimated with less then 50 pathways in the month. Note: Median and 95th percentile times are calculated from aggregate data, rather than patient level data, and therefore are only estimates of the position on average waits. Source: Unify2 data collection—RTT (provider) Published: 19 January 2012

In Vitro Fertilisation

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of IVF treatment.

Anne Milton: The Department does not collect this information. However, the Department is aware that a small number of primary care trusts have been taking steps to bring their historical financial problems in order, including temporary reductions to some non-urgent health services, such as infertility services. We very much regret the impact these decisions may have had on the people who rely on these services.
	Primary care trusts are well aware of their statutory commissioning responsibilities and the need to base commissioning decisions on clinical evidence and discussions with local general practitioner commissioners, secondary care clinicians and providers. The national health service deputy chief executive, David Flory, wrote to primary care trust commissioners last year to highlight to those involved in commissioning fertility services the importance of having regard to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence fertility guidelines, including the recommendation that up to three cycles of in vitro fertilisation are offered to eligible couples where the woman is aged between 23 and 39.

Influenza: Vaccination

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on each major cost area in the seasonal influenza immunisation programme in 2012.

Anne Milton: The total cost of the seasonal flu vaccination programme is approximately £180 million each year.

Mental Illness: Drugs

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued to primary care trusts on the procurement of drugs for the treatment of mental health disorders.

Paul Burstow: The Department has not issued guidance to primary care trusts specifically on the procurement of drugs for the treatment of mental health conditions.
	The Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention Medicines Use and Procurement workstream aims to influence clinicians and managers to work together to improve the productivity and quality of prescribing in the national health service. Under this workstream, the Department has produced a provider checklist of 50 efficiency measures to help strategic health authorities and primary care trusts deliver safer, more cost-effective prescribing. The schemes are real life examples taken from many NHS organisations in England. Three of the 50 schemes, relate specifically to mental health. They advise that primary care prescribing costs may be reduced if local NHS organisations draw up guidelines to support the lowest acquisition cost of antidepressant/antipsychotic medicines. The guidance is clear that this must not impact on individual patient choice and should be in line with National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance. None relate specifically to procurement.
	Much of the NICE'S guidance on mental health will include something on the most appropriate drugs to use in clinical practice. NICE has produced commissioning guides for some of its mental health clinical guidelines. However, this cannot be interpreted as guidance on procurement.

NHS

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many pieces of guidance his Department has issued to the National Health Service on the Health and Social Care Bill; and how much was spent on issuing such guidance;
	(2)  how many pieces of guidance his Department has issued to the National Health Service since May 2010 on NHS modernisation; and how much was spent on issuing such guidance.

Simon Burns: The requirements for national health service organisations are set out in an annual NHS operating framework, three of which have been produced since May 2010: “Revision to the Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2010-11” was published in June 2010, “The Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2011-12” was published in December 2010 and “The Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2012-13” was published in November 2011. Each of those documents set out what was required around modernisation in each year and they have been supplemented by routine correspondence during the year.
	NHS operating frameworks are communicated to NHS organisations through electronic means and as such the costs of issuing them is minimal. A copy of each has already been placed in the Library.

NHS: Private Sector

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Secretary of State has any plans to issue a revised version of A Code of Conduct for Private Practice: Recommended Standards of Practice for NHS Consultants, published in January 2004.

Simon Burns: We have no such plans. The latest version of this Code was published on 23 March 2009, amended to reflect the Department's guidance on patients paying for additional private care.

NHS: Standards

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of Best Practice Tariffs on improving quality and spreading best practice in the NHS.

Simon Burns: The Department of Health Payment by Results team have commissioned an evaluation of Best Practice Tariffs introduced in 2010-11.
	The evaluation will provide structured qualitative and quantitative information regarding the impact of Best Practice Tariffs in order to evaluate the effectiveness of using the national tariff as a lever to improve, clinical quality.
	The outcomes and recommendations of the evaluation are currently subject to peer review and we anticipate that these will be published in spring 2012.
	In advance of the publication, we can confirm that we are receiving positive feedback relating to how the best practice tariffs are helping to change existing practice and engage clinicians and managers.
	An example of this would be the ‘National Hip Fracture Database (NHFD) National Report 2011’, which indicates that “the implementation of BPT in England has served to promote interest, better resourcing, service improvement, and better outcomes in hip fracture care” (page 57). A copy of the report has been placed in the Library and is available from the NHFD website:
	www.nhfd.co.uk/

NHS: Training

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to enable clinical commissioners to (a) undertake formal training and (b) obtain qualifications in commissioning.

Simon Burns: Healthcare commissioning has generic and specialist elements and is multidisciplinary in nature. Individuals are recruited to ensure that commissioning can benefit from a number of professional and specialist skills, for example, healthcare professionals from a range of disciplines, public health communications specialists as well as those with finance, accountancy, procurement, statistical and informatics skills. The requirement for individuals to have formal qualifications will be set out in job descriptions and reflected both in the recruitment processes for individuals and in terms of ongoing development for individuals.
	All emerging clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will receive a broad range of development support from their primary care trust and strategic health authority.
	This includes financial support as well as assigning key personnel to them who have expert skills, such as senior finance managers and people with commissioning expertise and experience. A pathfinder learning network has been established to support the development of emerging CCGs and to facilitate shared learning during the transition.
	The NHS Leadership Academy is working with clinical commissioning stakeholder organisations, regional commissioning directors and others to develop and build clinical leadership and clinical commissioning capacity.

Nutrition

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to make any further investment in his Supermeals campaign.

Anne Milton: The recent Supermeals campaign was part of the ongoing Change4Life programme aimed at encouraging and supporting people to make small but significant lifestyle changes to improve their health. Consumer insights told us that people sometimes think eating healthier is more expensive and difficult and also that people who plan their shopping and their meals are more likely to make healthier choices. A full evaluation of the campaign is now under way and a decision on any future campaign will be subject to a complete analysis of the results as well as subject to Efficiency and Reform Group approval.

Obesity: Leicestershire

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much and what proportion of its budget Leicester City Primary Care Trust has spent on bariatric surgery since January 2011.

Simon Burns: The information requested is not available. The National Health Service Information Centre for health and social care provides a count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs)(1) where bariatric surgery was a main or secondary procedure(2). Data for Leicester City Primary Care Trust for January to March 2011, and provisional data(3) for April to September 2011, are given in the following table:
	
		
			  FCEs 
			 Total January-September 2011 142 
			 January-March 2011 33 
		
	
	
		
			 April-September 2011 109 
			 (1) A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. (2) The number of episodes where the procedure (or intervention) was recorded in any of the 24 (12 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and four prior to 2002-03) procedure fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. A record is only included once in each count, even if the procedure is recorded in more than one procedure field of the record. Note that more procedures are carried out than episodes with a main or secondary procedure. For example, patients under going a 'cataract operation' would tend to have at least two procedures—removal of the faulty lens and the fitting of a new one—counted in a single episode. (3) These data are provisional and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made. Counts produced from provisional data are likely to be lower than those generated for the same period in the final dataset. This shortfall will be most pronounced in the final month of the latest period, ie November from the (month nine) April to November extract. It is also probable that clinical data are not complete, which may in particular affect the last two months of any given period. There may also be errors due to coding inconsistencies that have not yet been investigated and corrected. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Radiotherapy: Northern Ireland

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many patients from Northern Ireland have been refused referral for cyberknife treatment in England;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Northern Ireland on the referral of cyberknife treatment for patients in Northern Ireland;
	(3)  how many patients from health trusts outside the Greater London area have been referred for cyberknife treatment;
	(4)  what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Northern Ireland on the criteria for referring a patient in Northern Ireland for cyberknife treatment in another part of the UK;
	(5)  what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Northern Ireland on the procedure for transferring a patient in need of cyberknife treatment for treatment in another part of the UK;
	(6)  how many patients from Northern Ireland have been successfully referred for cyberknife treatment in England.

Paul Burstow: The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr Lansley), has held no discussions about cyberknife with his counterpart in Northern Ireland and the Department holds no information concerning the referral of patients from Northern Ireland for cyberknife treatment in England.
	Cyberknife is the manufacturer's name for a machine. The treatment it delivers is stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (previously known as stereotactic body radiotherapy). There are a number of different machines capable of delivering this treatment in use around the country that offer greater functionality.
	Hospital episode statistics (HES) data available to the Department identify the treatments that the national health service provides but do not record the brand of equipment used. In addition to this, on the vast majority of cases, stereotactic ablative radiotherapy cannot be identified from other forms of radiotherapy treatment using HES data.

Social Services

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many registered social workers were employed by local authorities in England in adult services in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011.

Paul Burstow: The number of registered social workers employed by local authorities is not centrally collected.
	However, the Health and Social Care Information Centre collects and publishes data relating to the number of social workers who are directly employed by social services departments within councils with social services responsibilities in England. It is not known whether these social workers are registered.
	The following table shows the number of whole-time equivalent (WTE) social workers employed by councils in England during the period 2009 to 2010 as at 30 September 2010.
	Data for 2011 are expected to be published on 29 March 2012. These data will be sourced from the National Minimum Data Set for Social Care and so will not be comparable with previous years.
	
		
			 Number of WTE social workers employed by councils in England, as at 30 September 
			  WTE social workers 
			 2009 21,245 
			 2010 21,355

UNUM

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions officials in his Department have met representatives from UNUM; and on how many occasions representatives from UNUM have met members of advisory committees and working groups for his Department.

Simon Burns: We are not aware of any meetings between officials and UNUM. However, Dame Carol Black, expert adviser on health and work to the Department, met them on three occasions in January 2012 to discuss the positive relationship between work and health.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Council Tax

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what the types of discounts on council tax payment are that he proposes local authorities will be able to extinguish under the provisions of the Local Government Finance Bill;
	(2)  what the current exemptions from council tax liability are; and what exemptions he proposes local authorities will be able to amend under the provisions of the Local Government Finance Bill.

Bob Neill: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The current exemptions from liability for council tax are listed as follows. In their consultation, “Technical Reforms for Council Tax”, the Government proposed to allow local authorities to charge full council tax on second homes and to abolish class A and C exemptions, and instead allow authorities to set a discount of between 0 and 100%. In addition, we proposed to abolish class L exemption and instead make Mortgagees in possession liable for council tax. In order to meet the time constraints of the legislative programme, it was necessary to include clauses within the Local Government Finance Bill. The consultation has now ended and responses are being analysed. We will bring forward Government amendments to the Bill to make any changes that we consider appropriate in the light of the consultation.
	These reforms could allow councils to make up to a £20 reduction in the bill for a typical band D property in England. Getting empty homes back into use will increase housing supply and tackle properties that can attract squatters and vandalism and blight communities.
	There are no plans to change the rules on council tax relief currently available for homes left empty because a person has moved into a hospital or care home, or has died, or has moved to provide care to another. Councils will be encouraged to use their existing powers to apply discretionary discounts in cases where homes are empty due to other justifiable circumstances—for example, hardship, fire or flooding.
	
		
			 Class Description 
			 A Vacant dwellings where major repair works or structural alterations are required, under way or recently completed (up to 12 months) 
			 B Unoccupied dwellings owned by a charity (up to six months) 
			 C A vacant dwelling (ie empty and substantially unfurnished) (up to six months) 
			 D A dwelling left unoccupied by people who are in prison 
			 E An unoccupied dwelling which was previously the sole or main residence of a person who has moved into a hospital or care home 
			 F Dwellings left empty by deceased persons 
			 G An unoccupied dwelling where the occupation is prohibited by law 
			 H Unoccupied clergy dwellings 
			 I An unoccupied dwelling which was previously the sole or main residence of a person who is the owner or tenant and has moved to receive personal care 
			 J An unoccupied dwelling which was previously the sole or main residence of a person who is the owner or tenant and who has moved in order to provide personal care to another person 
			 K An unoccupied dwelling where the owner is a student who last lived in the dwelling as their main home. 
			 L An unoccupied dwelling which has been taken into possession by a mortgage lender 
			 M A hall of residence provided predominantly for the accommodation of students 
			 N A dwelling which is occupied only by students, the foreign spouses of students, or school and college leavers. 
			 O Armed forces' accommodation16 
		
	
	
		
			 P A dwelling where at least one person who would otherwise be liable has a relevant association with a Visiting Force. 
			 Q An unoccupied dwelling where the person who would otherwise be liable is a trustee in bankruptcy 
			 R Empty caravan pitches and boat moorings 
			 S A dwelling occupied only by a person, or persons, aged under 18 
			 T A dwelling which forms part of a single property which includes another dwelling and may not be let separately from that dwelling, without a breach of planning control 
			 U A dwelling occupied only by a person, or persons, who is or are severely mentally impaired who would otherwise be liable to pay the council tax or only by one or more severely mentally impaired person 
			 V A dwelling in which at least one person who would otherwise be liable is a diplomat 
			 W A dwelling which forms part of a single property, including at least one or other dwelling, and which is the sole or main residence of a dependent relative of a person who is resident in the other dwelling

Departmental Redundancy Pay

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much redundancy pay was paid to civil servants in his Department in each month between September and November 2011.

Bob Neill: The following table shows the total costs of voluntary and compulsory redundancy payments made to staff in each month between September and November 2011. In some cases these include the whole cost of actuarial buy out of pension which is a feature of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme. This means the amounts include elements which are paid to staff over time.
	
		
			  £ 
			 September 2011 91,658.74 
			 October 2011 511,664.73 
			 November 2011 865,479.11 
		
	
	As part of the spending review settlement, the DCLG Group is making a collective 33% real terms saving against its running costs by 2014-15. This equates to savings of over £200 million by 2014-15. In addition, the Department will save a further £190 million from the closure of the Government offices for the regions, taking overall savings on administrative running costs to 42% across the DCLG Group by 2014-15.
	These savings reflect the coalition Government's agenda of decentralisation, ending the micromanagement of local government, the abolition of regional government, and the broader need to tackle the deficit left by the last Administration.
	Exit costs are higher (by historic standards) in 2010-11 due to the closure of the Government office for the regions and measures taken to reduce running costs across the departmental family.

Departmental Travel

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department has agreed any contracts with (a) private hire vehicle and (b) taxi companies since May 2010.

Bob Neill: The Department has no contracts with taxi companies.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have made representations to his Department on the potential effects of reductions to local housing allowances since September 2010.

Grant Shapps: Ministers and officials from the Department for Communities and Local Government are in regular contact with local authorities across a range of issues.
	Local housing allowance rates in some areas are too high and give some Housing benefit customers access to properties that even people with above average incomes could not afford. This was not fair to the taxpayer and could not be sustained, we therefore had to make changes to local housing allowance by introducing housing benefit caps and moving to the 30th percentile of local market rents. We want people to continue to have access to decent housing but the support provided needs to be founded on principles of fairness, affordability and making work pay.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library a copy of each item of correspondence received by his Department from local authorities on the potential effects of reductions in local housing allowance on (a) homelessness and (b) local authority budgets.

Grant Shapps: The Department for Communities and Local Governments receives a large amount of correspondence from local authorities regarding a range of issues.
	Local housing allowance rates in some areas are too high and give some housing benefit customers access to properties that even people with above average incomes could not afford. This was not fair to the taxpayer and could not be sustained. We therefore had to make changes to local housing allowance by introducing housing benefit caps and moving to the 30th( )percentile of local market rents. We want people to continue to have access to decent housing but the support provided needs to be founded on principles of fairness, affordability and making work pay.
	These changes mean some people may have to move but up to 30% of properties should be affordable in every area and the homelessness safety net remains in place for those who need it.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what correspondence he has received from (a) individuals and (b) institutions on the potential effect of (i) reductions in local housing allowance and (ii) the proposed household benefit cap.

Grant Shapps: The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), receives numerous correspondence from individuals and institutions covering a wide range of policies. Local housing allowance rates in some areas are too high and give some housing benefit customers access to properties that even people with above average incomes could not afford. This was not fair to the taxpayer and could not be sustained. We therefore had to make changes to local housing allowance by introducing housing benefit caps and moving to the 30th percentile of local market rents. We want people to continue to have access to decent housing but the support provided needs to be founded on principles of fairness, affordability and making work pay.
	The benefit cap supports the Government's plans to make work pay. We want to create a welfare system that encourages people to work and that is based on the principles of fairness and responsibility. We have announced that we will work intensively with those likely to be affected by the cap, giving them immediate support from the Work programme, a nine-month grace period for those who have been in work for the previous 12 months and we will provide up to £130 million for short-term, temporary relief to families who may face a variety of challenges.

Local Government Finance Bill

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to publish draft regulations relating to the Local Government Finance Bill; and whether they will be available prior to report stage of the Bill.

Bob Neill: holding answer 6 February 2012
	My Department is working closely with the local government sector and other interested parties. We will be using these discussions to develop regulations relating to the Local Government Finance Bill and intend to publish these for consultation as and when they become ready. It is our intention to publish either draft regulations or a statement of intent for key regulations pertaining to the Bill prior to Commons Report stage.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate Change Convention: Canada

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations he has made to the Canadian government on its withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol.

Gregory Barker: We have made clear to Peter Kent, the Canadian Minister of the Environment, the UK's particular regret at the decision by the Canadian Government to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol. Officials continue to engage with Canada on the need for emissions reductions and to make further progress in the UN negotiations following the positive outcome at Durban.

Climate Change: International Cooperation

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress he has made on identifying a successor to the Kyoto Protocol since the Durban conference.

Gregory Barker: At COP 17 in Durban, countries agreed that a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol should begin on 1 January 2013 and that they would also negotiate a new legally binding instrument applicable to all countries that would be adopted by 2015 and come into effect from 2020. The UK stands ready to enter a second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol at COP 18 in Doha as part of a transition towards this new legally binding agreement.

Combined Heat and Power

Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the lifetime levelised costs of combined heat and power plants.

Gregory Barker: The Department regularly publishes energy and emissions projections for the UK, including estimates of combined heat and power (CHP) capacity. This modelling uses a methodology based on levelised costs but the model is not configured to produce these costs. The latest projections were published in October 2011(1).
	In addition, detailed modelling assessing the effects of the renewables obligation and the renewable heat incentive on CHP potential was published in January 2010(2).
	(1) Updated Energy and Emissions Projections 2011; October 2011:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/about-us/economics-social-research/3134-updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-october.pdf
	(2) Interaction between different incentives to support renewable energy and their effect on CHP: Renewable Obligation and Renewable Heat Incentive; AEA; January 2010:
	http://www.rhincentive.co.uk/library/regulation/100201CHP_modelling.pdf

Energy: Billing

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to oblige energy companies to give domestic customers the option of paying their bills by post.

Charles Hendry: Ofgem is responsible for the rules governing payment methods. Although suppliers are obliged under the terms of the supply licence to offer a wide range of methods for their customers to pay, only payment by cash and in advance through a prepayment meters are the only compulsory methods they are required to offer. All other payment methods, including paying by post, are a commercial decision for the company itself.

Energy: Billing

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to oblige energy companies to disclose to domestic customers the estimated meter readings on which estimated bills are based.

Charles Hendry: Ofgem is responsible for the rules governing meter readings. Gas and electricity suppliers are obliged, under the terms of their supply licence, to ensure that customers' meters are physically read and inspected once every two years.
	When an estimated meter reading is used to calculate a customer's energy usage the reading appears on the bill with the letter ‘e’ next to it. If the customer disagrees with the estimated amount, they may provide their own meter reading. The supplier will either accept the reading and issue a revised bill, or, can contact the customer to obtain a new meter reading or arrange to read the meter itself.

Energy: Business

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to assist businesses to reduce their energy bills.

Gregory Barker: The coalition Government are doing much to support business in this area.
	The Green Deal, available from autumn this year, will enable businesses to install energy efficiency measures at no upfront investment, and to access advice to help them better manage their energy consumption.
	Energy Intensive Industries that commit to delivering energy efficiency or carbon reduction targets, set out in Climate Change Agreements with the Government, can obtain, from April 2013, up to 90% discount on their Climate Change Levy payments for electricity and a 65% discount on other fuels used.
	The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme incentivises companies to improve their energy efficiency and thereby reduce their energy bills. And the Enhanced Capital Allowance scheme for energy saving equipment allows businesses to claim 100% first year capital allowance on the purchase of qualifying plant or machinery.

Energy: Manpower

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of jobs supported by the energy efficiency sector in the UK in the latest period for which figures are available.

Gregory Barker: The energy efficiency market is estimated to support around 75,000 manufacturing jobs(1), the majority of which are in the manufacture of glass and double glazed windows and doors. For the installation market, it is more difficult to assess the number of jobs supported because many energy efficiency measures may be installed as part of larger renovation or extension projects. Estimates suggest around 3,600 installers(2) were employed in the insulation market in 2009-10, which covers loft and wall insulation.
	(1) Source—Assessment of the Size of the UK Household Energy Efficiency Market; Element Energy Ltd and Quantum Strategy and Technology Ltd; November 2008.
	(2) Source—Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services: Report for 2009-10; K-Matrix; 2011.

Energy: Meters

Ian Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress his Department has made in ensuring that those with pre-payment meters for energy supplies are not overcharged.

Gregory Barker: Ofgem is responsible for regulating gas and electricity supply, including matters related to prepayment meters. New rules introduced by Ofgem in 2009 to prevent unfair price differentials, such as those between different payment methods, mean that prepayment meter customers now pay, on average, £20 less than standard credit customers for their gas and electricity.

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will make it his policy to ensure that all people over 75 years old are automatically placed on the cheapest tariff by their gas and electricity supplier.

Gregory Barker: The Warm Home Discount scheme has been introduced to provide targeted support for low income and vulnerable households through direct financial assistance with energy costs. The type of support offered and eligibility criteria for the scheme were consulted on and the final scheme has been designed to provide targeted support to those who need it most. This includes specific support for the poorest pensioners—this year alone, over 600,000 pensioners in receipt of pension credit guarantee credit only will receive the £120 core group discount. In total the scheme will assist around two million low income and vulnerable households each year.
	In addition, all pensioner households already receive the winter fuel payment and are among those eligible for the cold weather payment.

Fuel Poverty

Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in the (a) private rented, (b) social and (c) owner-occupied sector in (i) England, (ii) Rossendale and (iii) Darwen are classed as being in fuel poverty.

Gregory Barker: The latest data relate to 2009, and show that around 6,500 households (23% of such households) in Rossendale and 13,000 households (24%) in Blackburn with Darwen were in fuel poverty. The tenure breakdown cannot be calculated for small areas due to low sample sizes, but for England this is as follows:
	
		
			 Households in England in fuel poverty, 2009 
			  Number  (million) Percentage 
			 Owner occupied 2.5 17 
			 Private rented 0.7 21 
			 Social sector 0.8 21

Green Deal Scheme

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2012, Official Report, columns 133-4W, on Green Deal scheme, what steps he plans to take to determine the inclusion of technologies included in the Standard Assessment Procedure in the Green Deal.

Gregory Barker: Under the Government's proposals published in the recent Green Deal consultation document, new technologies will be able to be added to the list of Green Deal qualifying measures provided their energy saving performance has been independently verified. DECC proposes to use the existing process for modelling savings in the Standard Assessment Procedure, called Appendix Q.

Green Deal Scheme

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he has discussed with the Behavioural Insight Team the use of his recently announced additional funding to encourage take-up of the Green Deal.

Gregory Barker: DECC officials have been in contact with the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) to discuss the additional funding to incentivise the Green Deal take-up.
	DECC and BIT are currently undertaking a number of joint trials with businesses, the findings of which will add to the evidence base regarding the way these funds should be used.

Homesun Holdings

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 26 January 2012, Official Report, column 15, on Homesun Holdings, whether his Department has sought any external legal advice in respect of the judicial review.

Gregory Barker: Yes. The Department is being represented in the judicial review by counsel.

London Olympics 2012

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many invitations to attend events at the London 2012 Olympics (a) he, (b) other Ministers in his Department and (c) senior officials in his Department have accepted; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: None.
	Details of hospitality received by Ministers and special advisers and the most senior officials are published on a quarterly basis and will be available for July-September 2012 in due course.

Marine Energy Park

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to establish a Marine Energy Park in the (a) Severn Estuary and (b) Pentland Firth.

Charles Hendry: During my recent visit to Bristol on 23 January I launched the UK's first Marine Energy Park which will stretch from Bristol through to Cornwall and as far as the Isles of Scilly. It aims to create a collaborative partnership between national and local government, Local Enterprise Partnerships, the regional Universities and industry including Cornwall's Wave Hub, thereby accelerating marine power development.
	The Government support the work being led by Highlands and Islands Enterprise to create the Pentland Firth and Orkney Waters Marine Energy Park. My officials have been working closely with regional stakeholders from both Caithness and Orkney on their plans which will drive investment in the region by building on the existing work to develop marine energy.

Photovoltaics

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 26 January 2012, Official Report, column 391, on photovoltaics, what evidence his Department used to calculate the cost of the feed-in tariff to consumers.

Gregory Barker: Our latest impact assessment accompanying the phase I comprehensive review consultation on feed-in tariffs for solar PV provided projections of costs to consumers. This document available at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/consultation/fits-comp-review-p1/3416-fits-IA-solar-pv-draft.pdf
	sets out the methodology used to estimate both uptake of solar PV under various tariff scenarios and the corresponding costs to consumers.
	Projections of PV uptake were carried out by combining actual uptake data from the central FITs register and the MCS installation database with projections from the DECC FITs model. The latter was informed by evidence collated by consultants Cambridge Economic Policy Associates and Parsons Brinkerhoff. Further information can be found in their report “Updates to the feed-in tariffs model: Documentation of changes for solar PV consultation, October 2011”, available at:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/consultation/fits-comp-review-p1/3365-updates-to-fits-model-doc.pdf
	Modelled uptake projections are then combined with tariff levels to produce estimates of the potential impacts of tariff proposals on costs to consumers.

Renewable Energy: Heating

Peter Aldous: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the prospects for an underspend in the Renewable Heat Premium Payment scheme; and whether he plans to reallocate any such underspend to support domestic renewable heating technologies.

Gregory Barker: We are likely have an underspend in 2011-12 for the Renewable Heat Premium Payment scheme against the sums indicated as being available for this scheme. The Government have already reallocated funding this financial year from the part of the scheme which provides vouchers to householders to the part supporting projects for renewable heating in social housing.
	Where Government have been authorised to spend monies for a particular purpose in a particular year, all spending has to be shown to have been used for that purpose in that year in line with the Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000, as amended. This means underspends in any one financial year cannot be reallocated to a different financial year.

Renewable Energy: Manpower

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the renewable energy industry.

Charles Hendry: DECC estimates that there were over 500,000 people employed in the renewable energy sector in 2009-10. This information is taken from estimates by K-Matrix (2011) for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills(1) (please see following table) and includes the supply chain(2).
	(1) Extracted from Table 7, K Matrix, 2011, Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services Report 2009-10, available at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/business-sectors/low-carbon-business-opportunities/market-intelligence/market-data
	(2) K-Matrix's bottom-up methodology reveals more low carbon and environmental activity than SIC coding, and other previous estimates. K-Matrix compare their numbers to validated and verified data sources to mitigate the risk of double counting.
	
		
			 K-Matrix data on employment in renewable energy industries 
			 K-Matrix heading Numbers employed 2009-10 
			 Alternative fuel vehicle 101,072 
			 Alternative fuels 140,098 
			 Biomass 47,485 
			 Geothermal 79,012 
			 Hydro 4,955 
			 Photovoltaic 39,152 
			 Renewable energy general consultancy 4,865 
			 Wave and tidal 552 
			 Wind 91,194 
			 Total 508,385

Warm Front Scheme

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 11 January 2012, Official Report, column 324W, on Warm Front scheme, how many households in each parliamentary constituency have received assistance under the Warm Front scheme in (a) each of the last five years and (b) in 2011-12 to date; and what the average level of grant provided under the scheme was in each such period.

Gregory Barker: A table detailing the number of households assisted in each parliamentary constituency under the Warm Front scheme, in (a) each of the last five years and (b) to date in 2011-12, will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
	The average level of grant provided under the scheme for (a) each of the last five years and (b) to date in 2011-12 are as follows:
	
		
			 Scheme year Average grant (claims) 
			 2006-07 1,648 
			 2007-08 1,694 
			 2008-09 1,884 
			 2009-10 1,959 
			 2010-11 2,623 
			 2011-12(1) 1,769 
			 (1) Figures up to 31 January 2012

Warm Front Scheme

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in (a) West Ham constituency and (b) the London borough of Newham received funding through Warm Front in each of the last 10 years; and how much funding was provided in each of those years.

Gregory Barker: The number of households assisted and the amount of funding provided under the Warm Front scheme in (a) West Ham constituency and (b) the London borough of Newham in each of the last seven years
	(1)
	are as follows:
	
		
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-2010 2010-11 2011-12 (2) 
			 West Ham        
			 Households assisted 355 261 501 540 368 236 32 
			 Spend (£) 375,905.84 440,184.32 384,340.69 517,913.53 437,333.12 471,082.09 94,736.55 
			         
			 London borough of Newham        
			 Households assisted 735 658 1106 1340 919 496 70 
			 Spend (£) 1,034,827.88 1,250,564.89 1,036,364.87 1,369,686.17 1,324,561.34 1,352,610.74 219,503.71 
			 (1) ( )This information is only available post 2005 (2) Up to 31 January 2012

Wind Power: Expenditure

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what individual constraint payments were made to wind farm companies outside the balancing mechanism.

Charles Hendry: Forward energy trades guarantee that power is provided for a certain period to help balance electricity supply and demand, which keeps the system secure. National Grid routinely makes forward energy trades through the market with generators of all types. These trades take place outside the balancing mechanism, but are classed as constraint payments when they are undertaken to help manage transmission constraints. Forward energy trades can, on occasions, be more cost effective than taking actions in the balancing mechanism.
	National Grid has advised that individual trades are commercially confidential, and cannot therefore be published. Commercial confidentiality is a requirement of the protocol which regulates trading practices in the UK power market.
	Aggregate data on trades is available, however. In 2011, for example, trades on wind totalled £12.7 million at an average of £138 megawatt hour (MW/h) compared to equivalent actions on wind under the balancing mechanism which were £12.1 million at an average of £222 MW/h. Less than 10% of all constraint payments were made to wind farms. National Grid is incentivised by Ofgem to select the most cost effective way of balancing supply and demand.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Antisocial Behaviour

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding her Department plans to allocate to its proposed antisocial behaviour toolkit for the retraining of (a) police officers, (b) local authorities, (c) housing associations and (d) other related organisations.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The Government's proposed reforms will give the police, local authorities, housing providers and others faster, more effective powers to tackle antisocial behaviour and protect victims. Since the Home Office consultation closed, we have been discussing the practical details of the reforms informally with a number of those organisations, and we will publish our proposals shortly.

Civil Disorder: Lancashire Constabulary

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will estimate the cost of sending officers from Lancashire Constabulary to assist the Metropolitan Police with public disorder in London in August 2011; and how much financial assistance Lancashire Constabulary will receive from her Department towards these costs.

Nick Herbert: This information is not available centrally. The Government have stated that they are ready to support the police with the costs of the riots, and have given an assurance that 85% of police operational costs will be refunded. The arrangements for the provision of mutual aid, and the amount of the charges, is a matter for the two relevant forces. The Metropolitan police will make the payment directly to Lancashire constabulary and will seek reimbursement for all of its mutual aid costs from the Home Office.

Departmental Procurement

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was spent on procuring products and services by each police authority in 2010-11.

Nick Herbert: This information is not collected centrally, but data on overall police force expenditure is available on the website of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants:
	www.cipfastats.net
	Although decisions on the allocation of available resources are for chief constables and their police authorities, the Government have put in place the first regulations to join up police procurement by requiring the police to buy certain equipment through national frameworks, and is consulting on further regulations to cover additional categories of equipment and some services. The use of these frameworks is expected to help the police service achieve procurement savings of £200 million a year by 2014-15.

Mobile Phones

Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department has taken to prevent the misuse of devices provided under the Mobile Information Programme.

Nick Herbert: The Mobile Information Programme has issued guidance to forces covering secure handling of mobile devices including accounting for devices, auditing usage and protective monitoring of systems to identify unauthorised access to police information. Forces are responsible for including mobile devices in their existing local policies and procedures.

National Policing Improvement Agency

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 15 December 2011, Official Report, columns 125-7WS, on the National Policing Improvement Agency, on what date she expects the new information and communications technology (ICT) company to be established; how many police authorities had agreed to participate in the new company as at 1 February 2012; who the members of the shadow ICT board are; how many times the shadow board has met; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: The new police ICT company programme is making good progress towards the establishment of the company. The programme team is currently working with police authorities (and other stakeholders) to determine the ownership and governance structures and business model for the company. A prospectus outlining the detail of ownership structures and governance will be published shortly.

Offenders: Deportation

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national criminals imprisoned in the west midlands were removed from the UK in 2011.

Damian Green: Establishing how many foreign national offenders were imprisoned in the west midlands and who were removed from the UK in 2011 would require cross referencing a large volume of electronic records and would incur disproportionate cost.

Organised Crime: Greater London

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many incidents of gang-related violence were recorded by the Metropolitan police in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  how many incidents of gang-related violence were recorded by the Metropolitan police in each month from April 2011; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 7 February 2012
	The information requested is not available centrally.

Organised Crime: West Midlands

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many gangs have been identified in each west midlands local authority area.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office does not keep records of the number of gangs identified in each police force area. This is a matter for the relevant local police force. The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) are currently undertaking a mapping exercise using the Government's new definition of street gangs to help understand the scale and nature of the street gang problem.

Police

Therese Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedures her Department has ceased requiring the police to undertake since May 2010.

Nick Herbert: The Government have announced a package of reforms that will cut police red tape, saving up to 3.3 million police hours per year—the equivalent of over 1,500 police officers. These include scrapping the last Government's target on public confidence and removing excessive central performance management. We have also removed the national requirement for the Stop and Account form and reduced the burden of the Stop and Search procedures.

Police and Crime Commissioners

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department by what means potential candidates for police and crime commissioners will be vetted to ensure they are not disbarred by virtue of (a) bankruptcy, (b) custodial sentence, (c) details disclosed on a Criminal Records Bureau form and (d) disciplinary procedures following employment by a police force; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 7 February 2012
	Candidates will need to declare that they are eligible to stand when they formally declare their candidacy, which includes that they have not been sentenced to an imprisonable offence or are bankrupt. It will be a criminal offence to declare their candidacy if they are disqualified. This is standard procedures for all elections.
	It would be entirely inappropriate in a democracy for either the Government or the police to vet a candidate for suitability before they are permitted to stand in an election. Political parties may undertake such checks on their own candidates as they deem appropriate.

Police: Accountability

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will estimate the cost of holding elections for police commissioners in (a) Preston and (b) Lancashire in 2011; and what additional funding will be provided to (i) Preston city council and (ii) other local authorities in Lancashire in respect of such costs in 2012-13.

Nick Herbert: It is not currently possible to estimate the cost of elections in specific areas as we are collating the relevant information and, as is standard practice, will publish this is in the summer of 2012 before the elections in November 2012. The Home Office will meet the full cost of elections in 2012.

Police: Accountability

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the costs of elected police commissioners in financial year (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15; and from which budgets this funding will be drawn.

Nick Herbert: In 2012-13 the first elections of police and crime commissioners (PCCs) will cost £75 million. Running costs, in all years, should be no more than the current cost of police authorities, up to £78 million per year. Running costs will continue to come from a mixture of central Government funding and local precept, as is the case currently for police authorities. Elections costs will be borne by the Home Office, and will not come from money that would otherwise have gone to policing.

Police: Expenditure

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of expenditure (a) overall and (b) per head of population on police and community support officers in each local authority area in each of the last 10 years.

Nick Herbert: This information is not collected centrally. Spending decisions are made locally by chief constables and police authorities. Data on overall police force expenditure is available on the website of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants:
	www.cipfastats.net

Police: Information and Communications Technology

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has prepared a risk register in relation to the establishment of the new police information and communications technology company.

Nick Herbert: In accordance with standard programme management procedures the police ICT company programme has prepared and actively manages a risk register.

Police: Pay

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she considers herself bound by the recent decision of the Police Arbitration Tribunal on pay and conditions for the police.

Nick Herbert: holding answer 19 January 2012
	I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement of the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), on 30 January 2011, Official Report, columns 31-33WS.

Safer Neighbourhood Teams

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to support existing safer neighbourhood campaigns.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office does not fund or co-ordinate national or local safer neighbourhood campaigns. However, we welcome local partners coming together to design and deliver their local safer neighbourhood campaigns.

West Midlands Police

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions in the funding of West Midlands police on (a) road safety and (b) the purchase of new (i) fixed and (ii) mobile traffic safety cameras by the West Midlands Road Safety Camera Partnership in (A) the West Midlands, (B) Dudley borough and (C) Dudley North.

Nick Herbert: Reductions in police funding over the spending review period are challenging but manageable. How available funding is spent is a matter for police authorities and chief officers of police. Deployment of cameras is an operational matter for the police and West Midlands Road Safety Camera Partnership.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Departmental Billing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of his Department's invoices from its private sector suppliers were paid (a) within 14 days, (b) between 15 and 30 days, (c) between 31 and 60 days, (d) between 61 and 90 days and (e) more than 90 days after receipt in the last 12 months.

Chris Grayling: The Department for Work and Pensions became a signatory to the Prompt Payment Code in March 2009 and set targets to pay 100% of correct invoices within 30 days, 90% within 10 days and 80% within five days of receipt.
	Separate figures detailing payments for (a) within 14 days, (b) between 15 and 30 days, (c) between 31 and 60 days, (d) between 61 and 90 days and (e) more than 90 days are not collated and to provide this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	DWP payment terms are calculated from the receipt of a valid invoice rather than the date of invoice.
	The following information details the number of invoices received January 2011-December 2011 and the percentage of invoices paid with in 30 days, 10 days and five days.
	Number of invoices received January 2011 to December 2011—665,829
	The percentage of supplier payments made within 30 days—99.59%
	The percentage of supplier payments made within 10 days—98.41%
	The percentage of supplier payments made within five days—85.26%

Disability Living Allowance

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the effect of changes to the lower rate of disability living allowance on the social care budgets of local authorities.

Maria Miller: No such changes to disability living allowance are proposed.
	Personal independence payment will replace disability living allowance for working-age (16-64) adults from 2013-14. Eligibility for local authority social care provision is determined by each individual local authority who are best placed to understand the needs of their community. Our intention is that the new benefit is more closely targeted on those who face the greatest barriers to leading full, active and independent lives.
	We are still developing the assessment and published details on the entitlement thresholds and revised assessment criteria on 16 January and started a formal 15 week consultation. We are engaging with Department of Health and will continue to work closely with them, the Local Government Association and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities as we complete further estimates of the impact of the assessment on people receiving personal independence payment.

Employment and Support Allowance: Preston

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many successful appeals there were against refusal to grant (a) employment and support allowance and (b) disability living allowance in Preston constituency in 2011.

Chris Grayling: The Department does not hold the information in the format requested. However, HM Courts and Tribunals Service have provided the following table which shows the number of employment and support allowance (ESA) and disability living allowance (DLA) appeals heard in the Preston tribunal venue from January 2011 to October 2011 (the latest period for which statistics have been published). The Preston tribunal venue hears appeals made by applicants living in the Preston constituency as well as other nearby locations. The tribunal does not record the issue under appeal and therefore cannot isolate data relating to appeals on the basis of a claim for benefit having been refused. These figures therefore also include appeals made against decisions on the level of entitlement.
	
		
			 Outcomes of ESA and DLA appeals at Preston tribunal venue January-October 2011 
			  Number  of  cases cleared at hearing Number of DWP decisions upheld Percentage upheld Number decided in favour of appellant Percentage in favour Other Percentage other 
			 ESA 561 365 65 191 34 5 1 
			 DLA 267 168 63 96 36 3 1 
			 Notes: 1. Data taken from HM Courts and Tribunals Service management information; 2. 'Other' refers to cases that have been, for example, withdrawn, superseded or struck out.

Housing Benefit

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost to the public purse of housing benefit or local housing allowance within the private rented sector was in (a) London and (b) Manchester in each of the last 10 years.

Steve Webb: The available information has been placed in the Library.

Housing Benefit

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment he has made of the policy of paying housing benefit directly to tenants; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that housing benefit paid directly to tenants is used for its intended purpose.

Steve Webb: The Department has commissioned an independent consortium of leading research organisations to evaluate the effects of recent local housing allowance changes. The evaluation team is led by Ian Cole of Sheffield Hallam University, includes Peter Kemp (Oxford University) and members from the Institute for Fiscal Studies and Ipsos Mori.
	Safeguards exist within the housing benefit regulations where a landlord must be paid directly if the tenant is in eight weeks or more rent arrears.
	Private sector landlords can also be paid directly if the council considers the tenant will either have difficulty managing his or her finances, or it is improbable the tenant will pay his or her rent.
	In April 2010 we introduced a temporary additional measure where the council can pay a private sector landlord directly if it would help the tenant secure a new tenancy or remain in their current home at a reduced rent.

Housing Benefit

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many cases local authorities paid housing benefit directly to landlords due to rent arrears of (a) less and (b) more than eight weeks in each of the last five years.

Steve Webb: The information requested is only available for claimants subject to the local housing allowance whose benefit was paid to their landlord due to arrears of more than eight weeks over the last two years.
	
		
			 As at October each year Claims paid to landlord due to more than eight weeks of arrears Total local housing allowance caseload 
			 2010 80,000 1,070,000 
			 2011 90,000 1,240,000 
		
	
	
		
			 Notes: 1. Figures refer to benefit units which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest ten thousand. 3. Where a claim is paid to the landlord, and the reason given is unknown, or appears not to be valid for a local housing allowance claim, it has been assumed that payment to the landlord is not due to arrears in excess of eight weeks. Approaching 10% of cases had missing or incorrect reason codes in each period. 4. These data reflect the methodology for allocating claimants between local housing allowance (LHA) deregulated tenancies and non-LHA deregulated tenancies as revised in January 2012. This change caused an approximate 6% fall in LHA tenancies and a corresponding 30% rise in non-LHA tenancies. 5. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces the quarterly aggregate clerical returns, and is available from November 2008. Over time this will improve the accuracy, timeliness and level of detail available in the published statistics, as the information supplied is quality assured. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE)

Housing Benefit: Bedford

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of housing benefit there were in (a) Bedford constituency, (b) the east of England and (c) the UK in each of the last five years; and in how many such cases the benefit was paid directly to the tenant.

Steve Webb: The following table shows the number of housing benefit recipients in Great Britain and the east of England in the last five years.
	
		
			 Table 1: Housing benefit recipients in Great Britain and east of England, August 2007 to October 2011 
			 Date Great Britain East of England 
			 August 2007 4,040,900 302,100 
			 November 2008 4,171,940 318,210 
			 October 2009 4,568,730 352,760 
			 October 2010 4,789,490 371,510 
			 October 2011 4,921,920 383,260 
			 Notes: 1. Figures for August 2007 are taken from quarterly housing benefit and council tax benefit management information, and exclude any extended payment cases. 2. The figures refer to benefit units which may be a single person or a couple. 3. The figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. 4. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. Over time this will improve the accuracy, timeliness and level of detail available in the published statistics, as the information supplied is quality assured. Source: Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information, and Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE) 
		
	
	Housing benefit caseload figures at the constituency level are only available for January 2011. The following table shows the number of housing benefit recipients in the Bedford parliamentary constituency and Great Britain.
	
		
			 Table 2: Housing benefit recipients in Great Britain and Bedford parliamentary constituency, January 2011 
			 Date Great Britain Bedford 
			 January 11 4,833,470 8,830 
			 Notes: 1. Parliamentary constituency is based on the address of the housing benefit recipient. Note that local authority level data are based on the authority administering the benefit claim. It is possible for the recipient to reside in a different local authority to the one administering the benefit claim. Therefore if may not always be possible to make direct comparisons between parliamentary constituency and local authority data. 2. Also see notes for table 1. Source: SHBE 
		
	
	The information requested on payment of housing benefit to claimants is available only for Great Britain and the East of England and for the last two years.
	
		
			 Table 2a: Payment of housing benefit to claimants in Great Britain, October 2010 and October 2011 
			  Payment to claimant 
			  October 2010 October 2011 
			 Tenancy type Caseload Percentage Caseload Percentage 
			 Local authority 0 0 0 0 
			 Housing association 130,000 7 130,000 7 
			 All social rented sector 130,000 4 130,000 4 
			 Local housing allowance 870,000 81 960,000 78 
			 Non-local housing allowance 190,000 46 160,000 48 
			 All private rented sector 1,050,000 72 1,120,000 71 
			 Total 1,180,000 25 1,250,000 25 
			 Source: SHBE 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2b: Payment of housing benefit to claimants in the East of England, October 2010 and October 2011 
			  Payment to claimant 
			  October 2010 October 2011 
			  Caseload Percentage Caseload Percentage 
			 Local authority 0 0 0 0 
			 Housing association 10,000 8 10,000 8 
			 All social rented sector 10,000 5 10,000 5 
			 Local housing allowance 70,000 84 80,000 81 
			 Non-local housing allowance 20,000 51 20,000 53 
			 All private rented sector 90,000 75 90,000 75 
			 Total 100,000 27 100,000 28 
			 Notes: 1. Percentages rounded to the nearest whole percentage. 2. Local authority tenants with unknown payment destination are assumed to have payment made to the landlord. All other cases with unknown payment destination are excluded from the analysis. This affects only a small proportion of cases. 3. These data reflect the methodology for allocating claimants between local housing allowance (LHA) deregulated tenancies and non-LHA deregulated tenancies as revised in January 2012. This change caused an approximate 6% fall in LHA tenancies and a corresponding 30% rise in non-LHA tenancies. 4. Also see notes for table 1. Source: SHBE

Jobcentre Plus

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average ratio is of personal advisers to clients at Jobcentre Plus offices in London.

Chris Grayling: As at November 2011, the ratio of personal advisers to clients at Jobcentre Plus offices in London and home counties was 1:141. In this case, we are interpreting clients as being jobseekers allowance claimants. That is information we have access to via DWP IT systems. To ensure consistency with your related question about Barking and Dagenham, the information provided here relates to jobseekers allowance claimants only. There are other personal advisers who deal with different client groups such as people claiming employment and support allowance and income support.
	Following a rationalisation of the DWP Operations network, DWP regional boundaries now cover London and the home counties. Therefore the information provided is wider than that requested due to the reporting systems being configured to the new group organisation.

Jobcentre Plus: Barking and Dagenham

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the ratio is of personal advisers to clients at Jobcentre Plus offices in Barking and Dagenham.

Chris Grayling: As at November 2011, the ratio of personal advisers to clients at the Barking office was 1:98. The position for Dagenham was 1:159. Clients in this case are those people claiming jobseekers allowance. That is information we have access to via DWP IT systems. Those systems cannot provide details for these geographic areas for transactions other personal advisers will have with different Jobcentre Plus client groups such as people claiming employment and support allowance and income support.

Pension Funds

David Mowat: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the potential (a) costs and (b) benefits to pension savers associated with high portfolio turnover; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the average level of portfolio turnover in (a) UK occupational pension funds and (b) pension products offered by FSA-regulated entities.

Steve Webb: No data exist with which to answer the questions although the DWP has commissioned an independent research organisation to carry out a survey of charges in pension schemes. Part of this research will aim to measure the portfolio turnover rate in private sector occupational pension schemes and workplace personal pension schemes. Results will be published in summer 2012.
	More generally, pension savers are free to invest in whatever fund they choose. Typically, tracker funds may be expected to have a lower portfolio turnover rate, but in some areas active management and higher portfolio turnover may offer opportunities to outperform the market and individuals can choose these more expensive, more frequently transacting funds if they believe there is a benefit to doing so.
	The Government recognise the importance of charge levels to pension savers' returns and welcomes the NAPF initiative to bring the pensions industry together to improve the transparency of charges to customers and employers. We look forward to hearing conclusions from that work.
	The Pensions Act 2011 extended the Government's powers to set a cap on charges in qualifying schemes for auto-enrolment. If we find that we do need to use a cap to ensure that individuals' pension savings are protected from excessive charges, then this is something we will consider. However, the current evidence suggests that the vast majority of schemes do have appropriately low fund charges. The median charge is 1% for trust schemes (1.23% mean), with the larger schemes having lower charges still. Recent qualitative research found that occupational default funds had an average annual management charge of between 0.4% and 0.6% of funds under management, with none higher than 0.9%.

Pensions

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to bring forward proposals for an enhanced basic state pension.

Steve Webb: In April 2011 the Government published a consultation paper on state pension reform that set out two alternative options to a simpler, fairer state pension system that better supports saving for retirement Over three quarters of organisations who responded to the consultation supported the single tier pension in principle.
	Following the consultation the Government are continuing to develop their proposals. Should we decide to proceed with reform we will publish a White Paper and impact assessment as part of the usual process.

Social Security Benefits

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of claimants who will be affected by the proposed benefits cap in (a) Greater Manchester, (b) Bolton and (c) Bolton South East constituency.

Chris Grayling: On 23 January 2012 the Department published an updated impact assessment for the household benefit cap, which estimated that in Great Britain 67,000 households would be affected by the cap, in the first year of its implementation (the financial year 2013-14).
	On the basis of this impact assessment, the number of households affected in Greater Manchester is approximately 1,800 and the number of households affected in the Metropolitan borough of Bolton is approximately 200. The information is not available by parliamentary constituency. Following the concessions won in the House of Commons on 1 February, these figures are of course subject to change ahead of the Welfare Reform Bill gaining Royal Assent.
	The impact assessment assumes that the situation of these households will go unchanged, and they will not take any steps to either work enough hours to qualify for working tax credit, renegotiate their rent in situ, or find alternative accommodation. In all cases the Department is working to support households through this transition, using existing provision through Jobcentre Plus and the Work programme to move as many into work as possible.

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Michael Ellis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost to the public purse was of benefit fraud since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The information requested is not available.
	The latest set of National Statistics that details the level of fraud in the benefit system was published on 12 July 2011, covering the period October 2009 to September 2010. These are based on 2010/11 financial year expenditure and estimate that benefit fraud cost the taxpayer £1.2 billion.

Social Security Benefits: National Insurance Contributions

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Gravesham constituency who have never made national insurance contributions are in receipt of each type of benefit.

Chris Grayling: The information as requested is not available.

Universal Credit

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of school-age children living in households in receipt of universal credit in each of the next five academic years.

Chris Grayling: The information requested is not available. The detailed approach to managing the build-up of universal credit caseloads is under development.
	It is estimated that there will be around 4.5 million school-age children living in households entitled to universal credit once it is fully introduced.
	The estimate has been rounded to the nearest 0.1 million.
	The estimate has been made using the Department's policy simulation model, which is based on the Family Resources Survey (FRS), and is consistent with the updated impact assessment for universal credit which was published in October 2011, where caseload information was provided on the basis of entitlement.

Universal Credit: Lancashire

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff employed by his Department in Lancashire will be made redundant as a result of the introduction of universal credit.

Chris Grayling: It is too early at this stage of the programme to detail the exact resource requirements for universal credit.

Work Programme: High Peak

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the Work programme in High Peak constituency in increasing levels of employment.

Chris Grayling: We expect to see substantial indications of the success of the Work programme from spring 2013. A full independent evaluation has been commissioned for that year as the first participants complete their two years and I look forward to sharing the results with the House in due course. We will closely monitor the effectiveness of the programme in the interim.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Entertainers

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2012, Official Report, column 4W, on entertainers: Afghanistan, what the name was of each of the show business personalities and sporting professionals who visited Afghanistan in the last year at public expense; whether they were paid a fee from the public purse; what the amount paid was in each such case; and whether any audio or video recordings took place during such trips for broadcast or commercial use.

Philip Hammond: holding answer 30 January 2012
	A small number of high-profile show business and sporting personalities have visited Afghanistan. In 2011, celebrity visitors included Cheryl Cole, Colin Montgomery, Tim Westwood (who visited twice) and England rugby players Neil Back and Steve Thompson. None of these received a fee from the public purse. Tim Westwood broadcast a number of radio programmes from Afghanistan and Cheryl Cole was filmed for the Pride of Britain awards television programme.
	In addition, the Department has a contract with Combined Services Entertainment to provide performances by bands, comedians and dancers. The total cost of fees for performances in Afghanistan by entertainment personnel under the Combined Services Entertainment contract for 2011 was £205,782. The amount paid to these performers is commercial in confidence. No audio or video recordings for broadcast or commercial use took place during such trips.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with his Afghan counterpart on the number of Afghan personnel needed to assist each branch of the UK armed forces located in Afghanistan; and how many such Afghan personnel there were providing such assistance in the latest period for which figures are available.

Philip Hammond: The recruitment of locally employed civilians by the UK is not an issue routinely discussed with the Afghan Government.
	The UK currently employs 966 locally engaged civilians in Afghanistan. These work directly and indirectly in support of operations, but none are employed in a combat role. Locally engaged civilians play an important and valued role in Afghanistan, undertaking roles that are more economically or more appropriately undertaken by contracted personnel. The Government keeps under review the roles they play and the scale of contracted effort in the light of the evolving operation.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect of the biannual change of brigade and its leadership on the effectiveness of operations in Afghanistan.

Philip Hammond: There are a number of measures in place to minimise the effect of the biannual changeover of brigade on operational effectiveness in Afghanistan. These include extensive pre-deployment training, which incorporates regular interaction between the current and future brigades, and a staggered handover process over a few weeks. There are, in addition, a number of key posts that deploy for longer periods of time and/or are phased in their deployment to aid continuity. The biannual change of brigade is kept under review in line with wider planning for our operations in Afghanistan.

Air Force: Rescue Services

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to move the Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Team from RAF Kinloss.

Nick Harvey: There are no plans to move the Mountain Rescue Service from RAF Kinloss.

Armed Forces: Cadets

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the effects will be on (a) the size of the Cadet Force and (b) the funding available to them for equipment if budget reductions are made in his Department in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14.

Andrew Robathan: The cadet forces sponsored by the Ministry of Defence make a unique contribution to national life. It was announced as part of the strategic defence and security review that the cadet forces are to be sustained. The youth engagement review was tasked with determining the Defence requirement to engage with young people and how it can most cost effectively be delivered. The review is due to provide its final recommendations shortly.
	Current funding forecasts for financial year 2011-12 are provided in the following table.
	
		
			 FY 2011-12 
			  £ million 
			 Sea cadets 9.5 
			 Army cadets 48.6 
			 Air cadets 17.7 
		
	
	Future funding is currently being finalised.

Armed Forces: Vehicles

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to equip the Mark-8 MOD 1 delivery vehicles with lithium-ion batteries.

Peter Luff: There are no plans to equip the Mark-8 MOD 1 delivery vehicle with lithium-ion batteries.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many pieces of heavy duty cutting equipment capable of assisting with the rescue of injured armed forces personnel from armoured vehicles are available in each country; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence has no requirement for specialist cutting equipment to assist in the rescue of personnel trapped in armoured vehicles. Modifications and enhancements to protected mobility vehicles enable personnel to be released more quickly in the event of an incident, which include the introduction of first responder tools. Future modifications will include external hinges on identified vehicle access points, to provide first responders with an ability to gain access quickly.

Defence Equipment

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how much his Department spent on (a) warehousing, (b) staff, (c) IT and (d) transport costs for managing its defence inventory in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  which carrier companies his Department uses in respect of its defence inventory; and how much it spent with each carrier for each defence class of inventory item in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the (a) gross value and (b) impaired value of (i) capital spares, (ii) consumable spares, (iii) explosive capital items and (iv) consumable explosive items in the defence inventory;
	(4)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of the defence inventory which is surplus to military requirements and is stored (a) in the UK, (b) in Germany and (c) elsewhere;
	(5)  what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of the defence inventory which is not fit for immediate military issue.

Peter Luff: holding answer 6 February 2012
	This information is not held centrally and will take time to collate. I will write to my hon. Friend as soon as this task has been completed.

Defence Equipment

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what plans his Department has to (a) close and (b) reduce in size locations in Germany used for the warehousing of defence inventory items; and what estimate his Department has made of the associated cost of disposal or shipment of items stored in those locations;
	(2)  what revenue has been raised from the disposal of defence inventory items in each category in the last 12 months;
	(3)  what (a) surplus and (b) obsolete items in the defence inventory and located in (i) the UK, (ii) Germany and (iii) elsewhere his Department has identified in the last 12 months.

Peter Luff: holding answer 7 February 2012
	This information is not held centrally and will take time to collate. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as this task has been completed.

Defence Equipment: Sales

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when he plans to start the procurement process for the defence logistics supply chain (storage and distribution) business; and what the timetable is for completing the process;
	(2)  what work his Department has completed on option appraisal for the future of the defence logistical supply chain (storage and distribution) business;
	(3)  what the (a) scope and (b) structure of the procurement process is for the defence logistics supply chain (storage and distribution) business.

Peter Luff: holding answer 2 February 2012
	The Ministry of Defence's Logistic Commodities and Services group, which includes the storage and distribution function, is currently developing a Transformation Programme which will consider a number of options.

Defence: Expenditure

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much (a) his Department, (b) the Chief of the Defence Staff, (c) the Chief of the General Staff, (d) the Chief of the Air Staff, (e) the First Sea Lord, (f) the Adjutant General, (g) the Commander in Chief Land General, (h) the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland and (i) the General Officer Commanding London District spent on (i) staff, (ii) rent, (iii) utilities and (iv) maintenance in the latest period for which figures are available.

Philip Hammond: holding answer 10 January 2012
	Under previous arrangements, Official Service Residences (OSRs) were provided for senior officers in certain posts which required them to undertake official hospitality for Defence purposes. As announced by the Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan), on 12 December 2011, Official Report, column 63WS, as part of our plans to tackle the deficit this Government inherited, these arrangements have now been discontinued and a new Domestic Assistance policy will realise savings of at least £3 million per year from April 2012.
	Figures for expenditure on Official Service Residences in the financial year 2010-11 are currently being finalised. For the financial year 2009-10 the costs associated with the properties occupied by these senior officers are set out in the following table. The Adjutant-General has not been included as he did not occupy an Official Service Residence during the period. It should be emphasised that responsibility for decisions on expenditure relating to these properties lies with the Ministry of Defence, and not with the officers who occupied them at the time, or the current occupants.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Post Household staff Rent Utilitiesl (1) Planned maintenance 
			 Chief of the Defence Staff 128,000 17,000 — 450 
			 1st Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff 161,000 18,000 — 520 
			 Chief of the General Staff 161,000 (2)108,000 — 0 
			 Chief of the Air Staff 97,000 49,000 — 250 
			 Commander in Chief Land 17,600 18,000 — 440 
			 General Officer Commanding London District 102,000 16,000 — 136,000 
			 General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland 80,000 9,000 3,500 6,000 
		
	
	
		
			 (1) Expenditure relating to utilities for this financial year is not held centrally for the majority of properties. (2 )This property is part of the Crown Estate and a grant in aid is payable. 
		
	
	Expenditure relating to Official Service Residences was kept under close scrutiny and when it was practical to do so, staff were utilised from other residences in support of a function to maximise the use of resources. Civilian staff were retained unless the use of Service personnel was more appropriate for security reasons.

Departmental Training

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many away days his Department has held since May 2010; what the location was of each such away day; how many staff attended; and what the cost was of each such event.

Andrew Robathan: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is committed to developing its staff and there are benefits from holding away days and team building events. In the light of the current economic climate, however, we have instructed staff that such events should not be authorised unless they can be held at no extra cost on MOD premises.

Departmental Travel

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has agreed any contracts with (a) private hire vehicle and (b) taxi companies since May 2010.

Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence (MOD), under Project Phoenix, signed a contract in August 2011 with Babcock International Group PLC, as part of a pan-Government Framework agreement, which covers the management of fleet and self drive vehicles for MOD personnel in the UK. This contract is gradually replacing the existing arrangements and includes a provision, which is still to be introduced, for vehicles with a driver (i.e. private hire vehicles); however this comprises only a very small element of the overall contract.
	Outside of this contract, military units may operate local arrangements with taxi companies or with private hire companies. These details are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Guided Weapons: Scotland

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much of the demonstrator contract for the Sea Ceptor missile he estimates will be spent in Scotland.

Peter Luff: The Sea Ceptor Demonstration Phase contract, worth £483 million, has been placed with MBDA (UK) as prime contractor. The award of any sub-contract is the responsibility of MBDA.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the full service date is for the RAF Voyager aircraft;
	(2)  how many successful (a) operational and (b) training in-flight refuelling missions the Voyager aircraft has made; and which aircraft were re-fuelled.

Peter Luff: Full capability for the new platform will be achieved incrementally to achieve the in service date of May 2014. The full service date for the RAF Voyager aircraft is September 2016 when the fleet will consist of 14 aircraft.
	There have been no operational or training flights.

Military Aircraft

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2012, Official Report, columns 575-6W, on military aircraft, how many (a) Apache, (b) Gazelle, (c) Hawk T1/T1A/T1W, (d) Islander Mk1 and Mk2, (e) Lynx Mk7, (f) Lynx Mk9/9a, (g) Sea King Mk3/3a, (h) Tornado GR4 and (i) Typhoon aircraft are based at each site listed in the answer.

Peter Luff: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The number of aircraft at a particular Ministry of Defence operating base will vary on a day-to-day basis according to normal fleet management activities, including requirements for mandated maintenance, upgrade programmes and operational deployments. The information contained in the following table is correct as of 31 January 2012. Some of the bases listed in my answer of 31 January 2012, Official Report, columns 575-6W, do not appear in this table as there were no aircraft of the relevant type located there on this date.
	
		
			 Aircraft type Base Number 
			 Apache Wattisham 26 
			 Apache Middle Wallop 12 
			 Gazelle Aldergrove 9 
			 Gazelle Suffield (Canada) 4 
			 Gazelle Middle Wallop 4 
			 Hawk T1/T1A/T1W Valley 34 
			 Hawk T1/T1A/T1W Leeming 18 
			 Hawk T1/T1A/T1W Culdrose 15 
			 Hawk T1/T1A/T1W Scampton 11 
			 Islander Mk1 and Mk2 Aldergrove 1 
			 Lynx Mk7 Odiham 5 
			 Lynx Mk7 Yeovilton 6 
			 Lynx Mk7 Gutersloh 8 
			 Lynx Mk7 Middle Wallop 11 
			 Lynx Mk9/9a Dishforth 5 
			 Lynx Mk9/9a Odiham 1 
			 Lynx Mk9/9a Middle Wallop 1 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Lossiemouth 2 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Boulmer 2 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Leconfield 2 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Valley 5 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Chivenor 2 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Wattisham 2 
			 Sea King Mk3/3a Falkland Islands 2 
			 Tornado GR4 Marham 65 
			 Tornado GR4 Lossiemouth 48 
			 Tornado GR4 Coningsby 4 
			 Typhoon Coningsby 53 
			 Typhoon Leuchars 19 
		
	
	
		
			 Typhoon Falklands 4 
			 Typhoon Warton 10

Military Aircraft: Deployment

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost to his Department is of deploying (a) Typhoon and (b) Tornado aircraft; how many people are needed to operate each such aircraft; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: The number of staff required to deploy aircraft will vary according to the scenario involved.
	On costs, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 14 September 2010, Official Report, column 928W, to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

Military Aircraft: Repairs and Maintenance

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what efficiency savings have been made on maintenance of Royal Air Force planes.

Peter Luff: holding answer 16 January 2012
	The Royal Air Force has operated fleets of a number of different aircraft types over a long period of time. Maintenance arrangements have evolved as aircraft technology has become increasingly more complex and lessons are learned from previous contracts and processes. Current arrangements vary by fleet but range from in-house maintenance carried out by qualified service personnel to availability contracts, specifying airframe numbers and flying hours but inherently including maintenance.
	Through this evolution, efficiencies have been made through the Department's close partnership with industry and rationalisation of infrastructure and processes. The Royal Air Force and industry are committed to a strategy of continuous improvement of both the efficiency and the effectiveness of aircraft maintenance.

Military Bases: Northern Ireland

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many army personnel are based at each base in Northern Ireland.

Nick Harvey: As at December 2011, the number of regular army personnel based at each location in Northern Ireland was as follows:
	
		
			 Location Number (l) 
			 Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove, 1,000 
			 Abercorn Barracks, Ballykinler 650 
			 Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn 1,120 
			 Kinnegar Base 370 
			 Palace Barracks, Holywood 670 
			 (1) Rounded to the nearest 10. 
		
	
	In addition there were some 50 regular army personnel serving at reserve forces locations throughout Northern Ireland.

Puma Helicopters

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to reduce the order for life-extended Puma helicopters.

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent progress his Department has made on the Puma upgrade programme.

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status is of the Puma life extension programme.

Peter Luff: holding answer 28 November 2011 and 26 January 2012
	Working with Eurocopter, the Ministry of Defence continues to make progress on the Puma Life Extension Programme. As part of the annual Planning Round process, the Ministry of Defence routinely considers a variety of options for how to deliver military capability in the light of the latest financial and strategic context.

RAF Northolt

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the market value of RAF Northolt; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: Details of all Ministry of Defence (MOD) land holdings with asset valuation over £1 million can be found in chapter seven of the National Asset Register, last published by HM Treasury in 2007.
	The MOD does not routinely assess the current market value of all its estate because estimated receipts will depend on market conditions and other factors. Where valuations are obtained, these have to remain commercially confidential to avoid prejudicing the public interest in securing value for money.

RAF Northolt

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Mayor of London on the future of RAF Northolt; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: holding answer 6 February 2012
	None.

RAF Northolt

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has for the future of RAF Northolt; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: holding answer 6 February 2012
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 28 November 2011, Official Report, column 689W, to the hon. Member for Cambridge (Dr Huppert).

Third Sector

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contribution his Department is making to implementation of the Compact with the voluntary sector; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Robathan: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) fully supports the Compact with the voluntary sector. We have a long history of working closely and successfully with outside organisations to support both local communities and the armed forces community. The MOD continues to engage with local communities in a number of ways, including through initiatives such as the armed forces community covenant, our sponsored cadet forces and schemes such as the Education Outreach programme, where military and civilian staff mentor and support students in developing their career and employability skills. Voluntary sector stakeholders are given the opportunity to have their observations published alongside the annual report on the armed forces covenant.

Trident Submarines

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what alternative sites have been identified at which Trident submarines could be located.

Peter Luff: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 30 January 2012, Official Report, column 424W, to the hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn), the hon. Member for Plymouth, Moor View (Alison Seabeck) and my hon. Friend the Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Oliver Colvile).

Type 45 Destroyers

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Sea Viper system is fully operational on the Type 45 Destroyers (a) on operations and (b) available for operations.

Peter Luff: The Sea Viper system has achieved full operational capability. We do not comment on the operational status of individual warships as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

USA: Military Alliances

Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) Royal Air Force and (b) Royal Navy personnel he expects to begin training with US forces as part of the US/UK Carrier Co-operation project in each year until 2020.

Peter Luff: holding answer 7 February 2012
	The Statement of Intent, jointly signed at Defence Secretary level on 5 January 2012, provides a high level framework for US/UK co-operation as the UK regenerates a carrier strike capability. Principal co-operative activities, including training, will be taken forward progressively through the working group structure established by the Statement of Intent and may, if necessary, be subject to separate and specific agreements. It is not possible at this early stage to provide estimates of the total number of personnel to be trained by US forces, which might arise from co-operative activities undertaken within the framework of the Statement of Intent.

TRANSPORT

Departmental Billing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what proportion of her Department's invoices from its private sector suppliers were paid (a) within 14 days, (b) between 15 and 30 days, (c) between 31 and 60 days, (d) between 61 and 90 days and (e) more than 90 days after receipt in the last 12 months.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport and its seven Executive agencies monitor the payment performance for all vendor invoices in accordance with the criteria laid down by Government, namely:
	80% of invoices should be paid within five working, days of receipt,
	98% of invoices should be paid within 30 working days of receipt.
	The most recent statistics available, for December 2011, set out that the Department for Transport and its agencies paid 92.7% of vendor invoices within five working days, and 99.7% within 30 working days. The full statistics for the last 12 months, and supporting graphs, are published on the Department for Transport's website at the following address:
	http://assets.dft.gov.uk/publications/prompt-payment-statistics/statistics.pdf
	The equivalent information for alternative payment periods could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department for Transport is made up of a central Department and seven Executive agencies, as follows:
	Highways Agency (HA)
	Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
	Driving Standards Agency (DSA)
	Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)
	Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA)
	Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA)
	Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA)
	This response covers all eight entities.

Departmental Travel

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 16 January 2012, Official Report, column 31WS, on cost of ministerial cars, whether her Department has any other arrangements for ministerial travel; and how much her Department has spent on (a) private hire vehicles and (b) taxis for each Minister since May 2010.

Michael Penning: DFT Ministers use a mix of ministerial cars and public transport. I regret that the other information requested is not held in the format requested.
	In accordance with the Ministerial Code, Ministers in the Department always ensure that they make efficient and cost-effective travel arrangements.

Highways Agency: Planning Permission

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many planning applications for development for economic development and regeneration have been (a) stopped and (b) delayed as a result of objections from the Highways Agency in the last 18 months.

Michael Penning: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The Highways Agency has directed non-approval of 17 planning applications in the 18 month period from 1 July 2010 to 31 December 2011, out of 4,549 responses to planning consultations. There were 529 “holding” responses asking for more information before approval could be given.

M1: Repairs and Maintenance

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when she expects the roadworks on the M1 motorway in the vicinity of junction 19 to be completed with all lanes reopened and the temporary lower speed limit removed.

Michael Penning: The current works on the M1 motorway in the vicinity of junction 19 are expected to complete by spring 2012, allowing the temporary speed limits and lane restrictions to be lifted.
	However, in future, in order to keep the network in serviceable condition, it may be necessary for the Highways Agency to undertake maintenance works in the vicinity of the junction, and traffic management may be required as a result.

M1: Repairs and Maintenance

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when she expects the roadworks south of junction 13 of the M1 motorway to be completed with all lanes reopened and the temporary lower speed limit removed.

Michael Penning: The M1 improvement scheme between junctions 10 and 13 is planned to be fully complete by spring 2013, with all lanes reopened and the temporary lower speed limit removed.

M1: Road Traffic Offences

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what offences other than speeding have been detected by the fixed gantry cameras on the M1 motorway in (a) Nottinghamshire and (b) Hertfordshire; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Penning: The fixed gantry-mounted cameras on the M1 motorway in Nottinghamshire and Hertfordshire do not detect offences other than speeding.

Network Rail: Compensation

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what the costs were of compensation claims (a) received, (b) investigated and (c) settled by Network Rail for damage to property caused by train vibration between 2002 and 2012;
	(2)  how many investigations were (a) requested and (b) undertaken by independent structural engineers on behalf of Network Rail into damage to property caused by train vibration between 2002 and 2012;
	(3)  how many compensation claims were (a) received, (b) investigated and (c) settled by Network Rail for damage to property caused by train vibration between 2002 and 2012.

Michael Penning: The investigation and settlement of compensation claims for damage to property caused by train vibration are operational matters for Network Rail as the owner and operator of the national network.

Transport: Expenditure

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what her Department spent on (a) all transport, (b) light rail and tram schemes and (c) bus subsidies in each local authority area in England and Wales per capita in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Norman Baker: An analysis of Department for Transport expenditure according to the region receiving benefit can be found in the Department's annual report and accounts for 2010-11, Table 7 (page 44):
	http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/hc1012/hc09/0972/0972.pdf
	The Department does not publish this information at local authority level.
	Most public expenditure on buses, light rail and trams is managed by local authorities. The Department for Communities and Local Government publishes data on local authority expenditure by service which includes categories on "Concessionary fares", "Support to operators —bus services", "Support to operators —rail services", "Support to operators—other public transport services", and "Public transport co-ordination". The data for 2010-11 is available at:
	Revenue:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/revenue201011localdata
	Capital:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/capitallocaldata201011

NORTHERN IRELAND

Bill of Rights

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with external bodies on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: Ministers and officials have continued to discuss this issue with political parties and human rights groups. In November the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), and I met the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights to discuss a range of human rights issues relating to Northern Ireland, including a Bill of Rights.
	Our position remains that we want to see progress on this issue on the basis of consensus within Northern Ireland.

Departmental Food

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of food purchased by his Department was produced in the UK in each of the last five years.

Owen Paterson: My Department and the public bodies for which I am responsible, aim to promote Northern Ireland produce. All meat, fish and vegetables purchased by my Department in the past five years have been locally sourced where possible, depending on seasonal availability.

Departmental Training

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many away days his Department has held since May 2010; what the location was of each such away day; how many staff attended; and what the cost was of each such event.

Owen Paterson: Since May 2010, there has been one away day held by staff in my Department. This took place in central London. It was attended by 20 members of staff and the total cost was less than £100.

Welfare State: Reform

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and (b) other on the implications of the provisions of the Welfare Reform Bill for (i) payment of housing benefit and (ii) other matters in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Owen Paterson: I have regular discussions with DWP Ministers and Northern Ireland Ministers on the implications of the Government's reforms to the welfare system. These reforms will tackle the twin problems of poverty and welfare dependency and also end the something for nothing culture encouraged by the policies of the previous administration.
	The Government's reforms will ensure that work pays and will always be seen to pay. Under our plans, for every hour a person works they will he better off. Universal credit will lift 900,000 individuals including more than 350,000 children and 550,000 working-age adults across the UK, including Northern Ireland, out of poverty.
	The personal independence payment will ensure that support is targeted to help those who face the greatest barriers to leading full, active and independent lives.
	It is not fair that households on out-of-work benefits should receive a greater income from benefits than the average earnings of working households. To deal with this unfairness our reforms will also cap the amount of benefits in line with average weekly earnings. Our housing benefit reforms will also encourage people to make realistic choices about how they will meet the rent on a property that is larger than they need.
	We will also simplify the welfare system which under the previous Administration had become hugely complex and bureaucratic. Our reforms will tackle the unsustainable rise in spending on benefits and tax credits as part of the Government's continuing efforts to reduce the record deficit that we inherited from the previous Administration.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departmental Recruitment

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much his Department has spent on (a) recruitment services and (b) executive search agencies in each month since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

John Penrose: The Department has spent £23,200 on recruitment services since May 2010 (March 2011 £13,200 and November 2011 £10,000) and £17,000 on executive search agencies (December 2010 £10,000 and November 2011 £7,000).
	The Department has used external recruitment services only when it has been necessary to recruit to specialist roles that cannot be filled through the normal civil service recruitment arrangements.
	Expenditure on executive search agencies is related to candidates for public appointments to the boards of arm’s length bodies and not to departmental recruitment.

Tourism: Cumbria

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how many (a) overseas and (b) UK tourists visited (i) Cumbria and (ii) Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many people were employed in the tourism sector in Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency in each of the last five years.

Edward Vaizey: The International Passenger Survey, conducted by the Office for National Statistics provides details of the number of overseas visits to Cumbria in the last five years. The data can be found here:
	http://www.visitbritain.org/insightsandstatistics/inboundvisitorstatistics/regions/towns.aspx
	and is also summarised in the following table:
	
		
			 Cumbria 
			  Visits (thousand) 
			 2005 210 
			 2006 226 
			 2007 229 
			 2008 213 
			 2009 177 
			 2010 196 
		
	
	VisitEngland's Great Britain Tourism Survey for 2008-10, reports that Cumbria is the fourth most popular county outside London for domestic visits, attracting 3,717,000 overnight visits annually:
	http://www.visitengland.org/insight-statistics/major-tourism-surveys/overnightvisitors/UKTS2010/LA_County_2006_2010.aspx
	Details of visits are not collated at the Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency level. However, VisitBritain has published a study by Deloitte in 2010 which provides information about the top 50 districts with the highest share of employees in the visitor economy:
	http://www.visitbritain.org/Images/Economic%20case% 20for%20the%20Visitor%20Economy%20-%20Phase%202%20-%2026%20July%202010%20-%20FINAL_tcm29-14561.pdf
	The study (annex A, page 75) found that 8,400 people in the Westmoreland and Lonsdale constituency were employed in tourism, representing 20.6% of all jobs.

INDEPENDENT PARLIAMENTARY STANDARDS AUTHORITY COMMITTEE

Public Expenditure

James Morris: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, for what reason the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) has requested a supplementary estimate for 2011-12; and what decision the Speaker's Committee for the IPSA has reached in relation to that request.

Charles Walker: IPSA has requested a supplementary estimate to enable it: (a) to transfer existing provision in support of Members' salaries, staff costs and expenses from unallocated (non-cash) provision to active funds; (b) to make technical adjustments in line with the Government's Clear Line of Sight project and (c) to make consequential changes to its net cash requirement. It has taken this step on a precautionary basis, as the Government's revised estimates procedures provide only one opportunity each year to apply for a supplementary estimate.
	The Committee has approved the draft supplementary estimate without modification, in line with the advice provided to it under statute by HM Treasury. The draft supplementary estimate will now be laid before the House. The Committee's letter to Sir Ian Kennedy responding to IPSA's request is published on the Committee's webpage at:
	www.parliament.uk/scipsa

TREASURY

Banks: Regulation

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department plans to publish an analysis of the effectiveness of Project Merlin after the expiry of the agreement with the banks.

Mark Hoban: The final results for Project Merlin will be published on 13 February.

Banks: Tax Yields

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue from taxes was received from the banking industry in each year between 2001 and 2010.

Mark Hoban: On 31 August 2011 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) published Official Statistics relating to Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and corporation tax (CT) receipts from the banking sector for the financial years 2005-06 to 2010-11. Data for CT and PAYE are not available for earlier years. A link to the Official Statistics publication is provided here:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/banking/menu.htm
	Banks also pay a number of other taxes, including irrecoverable value added tax (VAT). HMRC does not currently produce data on receipts received from the banking sector in respect of these taxes. In addition, banks have been liable for the bank levy since its introduction in January 2011.

Business: Loans

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what safeguards his Department plans to put in place to ensure that lower funding costs for banks as a result of credit easing are passed on to small businesses.

Mark Hoban: Banks participating in the National Loan Guarantee scheme will be contractually obliged to pass on the benefit of lower cost funds to smaller businesses.

Canal and River Trust: Finance

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what Barnett consequentials will result from the Government's grant to the Canal and River Trust.

Danny Alexander: The grant to the Canal and River Trust is being funded from within DEFRA's existing budget. Therefore there will be no Barnett consequentials. The devolved Administrations received Barnett consequentials for DEFRA's budget at the 2010 spending review in the usual way.

Climate Change Levy: Metals

Owen Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which businesses he expects to be affected by proposals to change the climate change levy for metal recycling processes.

Chloe Smith: As announced on 6 December 2011, the UK secured state aid approval for an 80% relief from the climate change levy for businesses that undertake aluminium and steel recycling processes. These businesses will be required to pay a new 20% lower rate of the climate change levy from 1 April 2012.
	The Tax Impact and Information Note published on 6 December 2011 set out the impacts of introducing the recycling lower rate and is available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2011/tiin6845.pdf

Corporation Tax

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with each devolved Administration on the devolution of responsibility for corporation tax.

David Gauke: Treasury Ministers meet regularly with Ministers in the devolved Administrations to discuss a wide range of issues.
	I also chair the Ministerial Working Group on Rebalancing the Northern Ireland Economy. This group has discussed a range of issues including the possible devolution of responsibility for varying the rate of corporation tax to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Corporation Tax: Tax Yields

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the effect on the yield in corporation tax from (a) Scotland, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) England and Wales and (d) the UK if the taxable rate were reduced to (i) 12.5 per cent., (ii) 16 per cent. and (iii) 20 per cent. in each of the next four financial years.

David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs have produced an estimate of the exchequer impact of a decrease in the main rate of corporation tax (CT) to 12.5% in Scotland. This estimate was published by HM Treasury on 13 July 2011. A link to this publication is provided here:
	http://www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk/scotlandoffice/15708.html
	HM Revenue and Customs have also produced an estimate of the exchequer impact of a decrease in the main rate of CT to 12.5% in Northern Ireland. This estimate was published in the Government's consultation on rebalancing the Northern Ireland economy. A link to which is provided here:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/consult_rebalancing_ni_economy.htm
	Estimates of the impact of other CT rate cuts in Scotland and Northern Ireland and CT rate cuts in England and Wales and the UK cannot be produced for this answer due to disproportionate costs.

Corporation Tax: Tax Yields

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the yield in corporation tax was from (a) Scotland, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) England and Wales and (d) the UK in each of the last four financial years.

David Gauke: Figures for corporation tax (CT) net receipts for the UK as a whole from 1998-99 to 2010-11 are available in Table 11.1A of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC's) CT Statistics publication. The CT receipts figures for 2011-12 will be available when this publication is updated in the summer. The current publication is available on the internet at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/corporate_tax/corporation-tax-statistics.pdf
	With regard to Northern Ireland, I refer the hon. Member to paragraph 4.34 (page 26) of the consultation document “Rebalancing the Northern Ireland economy”, published by HM Treasury on 24 March 2011, in which estimates of the amount of CT for Northern Ireland based companies have been published. The analysis of Northern Ireland postcodes implies that Northern Ireland corporation tax receipts excluding North sea oil and gas, and also excluding branches, varied between 1.3% and 1.6% of UK corporation tax receipts between 2002-03 and 2007-08, broadly averaging 1.5%.
	A link to the full document is given here:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/rebalancing_the_northern_ireland_economy_consultation.pdf
	With regard to Scotland, I refer the hon. Member to paragraphs 8, 9, 12 and 13 (pages 3 and 4) of the HMRC explanatory note on estimating the cost of a reduction in the CT rate in Scotland, published by HM Treasury on 13 July 2011., in which estimates of the proportion of onshore CT for Scotland based companies have been published. The proportion of onshore UK CT receipts which relate to Scotland is estimated to be 7%. The methodology used in deriving this proportion is consistent with the estimates of the cost of a CT rate change in Northern Ireland published in the HM Treasury Consultation document, “Rebalancing the Northern Ireland economy”. Companies whose registered address has a Scottish postcode, excluding UK oil and gas companies, have been identified, and the total CT accrual from these companies has been calculated. Estimates have been produced in this way for 2004-05 to 2008-09. Across these years, Scottish registered companies make up around 7% of total UK onshore CT accruals.
	A link to the full document is given here:
	http://www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk/scotlandoffice/files/HMRC%20Corporation%20tax%20paper%20july%202011.pdf
	Separate estimates for England and Wales are not available.

Counterfeit Manufacturing

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to reduce the availability of counterfeit (a) alcohol and (b) cigarettes sold in shops.

Chloe Smith: The Government are committed to tackling the illicit trade in non-UK duty paid alcohol and cigarettes, including counterfeit products. Last year they published a comprehensive new tobacco strategy which is available at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/news/tackling-tobacco.htm
	A strategy to tackle alcohol fraud was published in 2009, which is available at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2009/tackling-alcohol-2850.pdf
	HMRC works collaboratively with other enforcement agencies, such as Trading Standards and the police to clamp down on the sales of illicit alcohol and tobacco sold in shops. Working together across agencies allows a much wider range of powers and sanctions to be applied including criminal prosecution, seizure of goods, vehicles and equipment, assessment for evaded excise duty and the issue of civil financial penalties. Additionally shops found to be selling illicit products can have their licence to sell alcohol revoked or suspended.

Departmental Billing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of his Department's invoices from its private sector suppliers were paid (a) within 14 days, (b) between 15 and 30 days, (c) between 31 and 60 days, (d) between 61 and 90 days and (e) more than 90 days after receipt in the last 12 months.

Chloe Smith: HM Treasury's aim is to pay all valid goods and services invoices within five working days and this applies to all suppliers of goods and services. The Department only monitors its performance against its five day target and information for other periods could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Details of HM Treasury's performance against the five working day aim since May 2010 can be found on the Department's website at:
	www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/group_payment_performance.htm

Loans: Republic of Ireland

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written statement of 31 January 2012, Official Report, column 38WS, on bilateral loan: Ireland, what the rate of interest payable is on the second instalment of the loan; and what the 7.5 year sterling swap rate applicable on 30 January 2012 was.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The rate of interest applicable to each tranche of the bilateral loan to Ireland is set out in the Loan Agreement that I deposited in the Library of the House on 10 January 2011.
	In accordance with the Loan Agreement and as I set out in my reply to my hon. Friend on 1 November 2011, Official Report, columns 572-73W, the rate of interest on each tranche of the loan is equal to the 7.5 year sterling swap rate at the time of disbursement plus a fixed margin of 229 basis points.
	The 7.5 year sterling swap rate on 30 January, as used for the purposes of calculating the rate of interest applicable to the second tranche of the bilateral loan, was 1.958 per cent per annum.
	However, as I set out in my reply to my hon. Friend on 9 November 2011, Official Report, column 339W, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has taken the decision in principle to lower the interest rate on the bilateral loan to Ireland. The new interest rate is yet to be agreed, but it will apply retrospectively to those tranches of the loan that have already been disbursed, including those on 14 October 2011 and 30 January 2012.

Non-Domestic Rates: Tourism

Simon Hart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has given any consideration to the possibility of allowing seasonal variations of business rates in high tourism areas to encourage businesses to remain open during the off-peak season.

David Gauke: Annual business rates bills already account for different income potentials across different seasons. The annual bill is then spread equally across payments. However, it would be at the discretion of the local billing authority to agree any bespoke payment schedule.

Pension Funds

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with pension funds on the allocation of funding for infrastructure under his memorandum of understanding with pension funds; how many pension funds have agreed to provide funding; and what such money has been allocated in each year of this Parliament.

Danny Alexander: holding answer 7 February 2012
	The Treasury is currently in discussions with the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) and the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) to develop a pension infrastructure platform which will be wholly owned by UK Pension Funds.
	A public update of progress will be published at the Budget.

Welfare Tax Credits

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people affected by his proposed change to hours worked before claiming tax credits.

David Gauke: holding answer 6 February 2012
	I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Cathy Jamieson) on 10 January 2012, Official Report, column 72W.

Welfare Tax Credits

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish an updated version of Table A2 in the June 2010 Budget taking account of changes to tax credits since that time.

David Gauke: There are currently no plans to produce an updated table.

PRIME MINISTER

India: European Fighter Aircraft

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Prime Minister when he last discussed the bid by BAe Systems to sell the Typhoon to India with the Indian Prime Minister.

David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her at Prime Minister's Questions today.

London Olympics 2012

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Prime Minister how many invitations to attend events at the London 2012 Olympics (a) he and (b) his senior officials have accepted; and if he will make a statement.

David Cameron: Details of hospitality received by Ministers and special advisers and the most senior officials are published on a quarterly basis and will be available for July-September 2012 in due course.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential consequences of the Taliban establishing a political office based in Qatar.

William Hague: The UK is committed to supporting Afghan-led efforts to achieve an inclusive and sustainable political settlement. The Taliban's statement at the start of this year expressing a willingness to participate in a political office in Qatar is a welcome step. President Karzai has also said he would support the establishment of a political office. The Taliban's statement suggests that they may have recognised the need to engage in a political process. However, this statement comes at an early stage in a reconciliation process and further steps are necessary for the Taliban to demonstrate their credibility.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether (a) any official contact has taken place and (b) there are any future plans for contact between representatives of the UK Government and the newly established political office of the Taliban in Qatar.

William Hague: While the Taliban has released a statement expressing its willingness to participate in a political office in Qatar, the office has not yet been established. As such there has been no contact with the office. Looking ahead we are working with the Afghan Government to support their reconciliation efforts and will respond to their requests for assistance.

Bahrain: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contact he has had with the authorities in Bahrain about recent developments in that country.

William Hague: I called the Bahraini Foreign Minister on 31 January to express our concern at the increased levels of violence on the street, ahead of the one-year anniversary of the 'Day of Rage' on 14 February. We urge all parties to show restraint and call on other leaders to do the same.
	I also encouraged the authorities to continue implementing fully the Independent Commission of Inquiry's recommendations, as promised by His Majesty the King in November. This is crucial for the long-term stability of the kingdom.
	Our ambassador in Manama has delivered the same messages during his recent calls with the King, Crown Prince, Prime Minister and Interior Minister.

Bahrain: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the situation in Bahrain.

William Hague: We are concerned by the increased levels of violence on the street, ahead of the one-year anniversary of the 'Day of Rage' on 14 February. We urge all parties to show restraint and call on other leaders to do the same.
	The Bahraini Government have made steady and welcome progress on implementing the Independent Commission of Inquiry's recommendations to date. We continue to offer UK expertise and assistance where appropriate to help Bahrain on this path and urge swift delivery on promises made to reform.
	We also urge the opposition to engage constructively and enter into a political dialogue with the authorities. This is the right course for the Bahraini people.

Departmental Data Protection

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many cases of (a) data loss and (b) breaches of confidentiality occurred in his Department in 2011.

David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has a formal procedure for reporting, investigating and monitoring any incidents involving the loss or compromise of personal data for which it is responsible. According to our records, in the calendar year ending December 2011 there were six incidents involving the loss of data and four involving a breach of confidentiality. Two incidents were considered significant enough to report to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Departmental Recruitment

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on (a) recruitment services and (b) executive search agencies in each month since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Henry Bellingham: The following table shows the amount spent by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on (a) recruitment services and (b) executive search in every month since May 2010.
	The FCO uses recruitment agencies to attract a wide range of applicants to ensure its work force is as diverse and highly skilled as possible. For specialist recruitment campaigns, agencies are better placed to target applicants with the most relevant skills within that sector. A competitive tendering process is run to select an agency for external recruitment campaigns. This has proven to be more cost-effective than in-house recruitment.
	The figures cover recruitment for UK-based members of staff only—figures for recruitment undertaken by overseas Posts advertising for local staff positions are not held centrally. All of the positions were approved for external recruitment as either business-critical or a front-line service, in accordance with the terms of the Government-wide recruitment freeze.
	
		
			 Month Recruitment services (£) Executive search (£) 
			 2010   
			 May 22,686.63 17,625.00 
			 June 16,291.67 39,539.89 
			 July 7,039.00 17,652.13 
			 August 17,566.24 0 
			 September 0 0 
			 October 23,577.75 0 
			 November 18,800.00 17,390.00 
			 December 7,813.75 0 
			    
			 2011   
			 January 0 0 
			 February 0 0 
			 March 12,215.96 0 
			 April 10,692.50 0 
			 May 8,260.46 0 
			 June 2,139.00 8,812.50 
			 July 10,120.27 7,080.00 
			 August 5,634.00 0 
			 September 8,312.00 0 
			 October 5,801.00 0 
			 November 6,337.20 0 
			 December 5,676.30 0 
			    
			 2012   
			 January 9,600.00 0 
			 February 4,646.80 0

Iran: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the (a) Iranian economy and (b) effect of the international sanctions regime on that economy.

William Hague: The Iranian economy is already weakened by government mismanagement. As a result of this, Iran has experienced high inflation and unemployment for some time.
	The aim of sanctions is to encourage Iran to negotiate seriously and meaningfully on the nuclear issue. The sanctions are intended to bring pressure to bear on the regime as well as to target the nuclear programme. We judge that their impact is increasing. The Iranian Government can act to bring sanctions to an end.

Iran: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contact he has had with his counterpart in Turkey on matters related to Iran in recent weeks.

William Hague: I remain in regular contact with my Turkish counterpart on a range of Middle Eastern and North African issues, including Iran. Most recently, in a conversation with the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on 31 January, I urged Turkey not to increase its oil imports from Iran, on the grounds that this would undermine the impact of EU sanctions agreed on the 23 January. I also restated our position that we are willing to support a resumption of talks between the E3+3—the UK, US, France, Germany, Russia and China—and Iran over the nuclear issue, providing Iran drops its unreasonable preconditions for negotiations.

Languages

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many members of his Department's staff speak (a) French, (b) Arabic, (c) Mandarin, (d) Hindi, (e) Urdu and (f) Spanish.

Henry Bellingham: Based on our February 2012 central HR database records for our UK based staff work force of approximately 4,500, the proportions with language skills registered are:
	French: 59%
	Arabic: 5%
	Mandarin: 3%
	Hindi: 1%
	Urdu: 1%
	Spanish: 21%.
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond Yorks) (Mr Hague), to the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the right hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South) (Mr Alexander), on 11 July 2011, Official Report, column 126W.
	These figures are higher than those given in that reply, reflecting recent investment in training and better central management information following a campaign in summer 2011 to ensure that UK based staff registered details of their skills on our central HR database. Nevertheless, these figures still may not comprehensively reflect the large number of staff who have not taken FCO examinations, or not registered their language skills on the database.
	We are creating extra speaker slots in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office network in line with foreign policy priorities, including in the middle east, China and Latin America. We will invest in additional full-time language training for officers appointed to these positions where necessary.

Middle East: Oil

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what analysis his Department has carried out on the potential effect on world trade of a closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

William Hague: Given that 35% of the world's seaborne oil shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz, its closure would undoubtedly have a major impact on global oil prices, with far-reaching consequences for international trade and global growth.
	We share with others our unwavering commitment to maintaining rights of passage under international law. As we have consistently made clear, any attempt by Iran to close the strait would be illegal and unsuccessful.

North Korea

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential regional consequences of recent changes in North Korea.

William Hague: The succession from Kim Jong II to Kim Jong Un appears to be progressing smoothly. The situation in North Korea, and in the region more generally, is calm. Long-term stability on the Korean peninsula will only be achieved through the complete and verifiable denuclearisation of North Korea. We believe that the Six Party Talks offer the best prospect for achieving this. Last month, the US, Japan and South Korea publicly indicated their willingness to return to negotiations with North Korea. The UK calls on North Korea to take all necessary steps for talks to resume.

North Korea: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contact he has had with the Government of North Korea since the death of Kim Jong-il.

William Hague: I have had no contact with the government of North Korea following the death of Kim Jong-il. However, I made a public statement on 19 December urging the North Korean Government to engage with the international community and resume the Six Party Talks on denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential consequences of recent changes to the regime in North Korea on efforts to stem nuclear proliferation in the region.

William Hague: There is no evidence to suggest that North Korea's nuclear proliferation activities have ceased as a result of changes to the regime in North Korea. We will continue to work with our international partners, including in the UN and the EU, to counter the risk posed by nuclear proliferation in the region. The UK will also continue to urge North Korea to return to the 6 Party Talks on the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

Pakistan: Foreign Relations

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what official contact he has had with the President of Pakistan in the last three months.

William Hague: Over the past three months, I have not had official contact with President of Pakistan. However, I have spoken several times to my opposite number, Foreign Minister Rabbani Khar and HMG Ministers and officials have regular contact with all major political leaders in Pakistan, including the president. For instance, during her visit to Pakistan in January 2012, the right hon. Baroness Warsi held official discussions with President Zardari, Prime Minister Gilani and Foreign Minister Rabbani Khar from the Pakistan People's Party (PPP).

Pakistan: Foreign Relations

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what official contact he has had with leaders of opposition political parties in Pakistan in the last three months.

William Hague: Over the past three months, I have not had official contact with the leaders of opposition political parties in Pakistan. However, HMG Ministers and officials have regular contact with all major political leaders in Pakistan. For instance, during her visit to Pakistan in January 2012 the right hon. Baroness Warsi and Lord Green held discussions with senior opposition leaders from the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N), the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) and the Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Pakistan: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential consequences of upcoming assembly elections in Pakistan; and if he will make a statement.

William Hague: The approaching elections are unprecedented in Pakistan's history. I hope that Pakistan will see a civilian government run its full term and transfer power to another democratically elected government. The elections are a crucial step in Pakistan's democratic history. We want Pakistan to enjoy credible elections that respect the constitution and help ensure stability. We believe that a strong, stable, constitutional democracy is in Pakistan's interests.

Schools: Fees and Charges

Wayne David: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on school fees at each school for children of its staff in each of the last two years.

Henry Bellingham: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) spent the following sums on children's education in the last two financial years:
	
		
			 £ 
			  UK schooling Overseas schooling 
			 2009-10 13,329,851 11,535,667 
			 2010-11 13,067,398 11,520,900 
		
	
	It is a condition of their employment that members of the diplomatic service must be prepared to serve anywhere in the world at any time during their career, sometimes at very short notice. Those with children have a legal obligation as parents to ensure that their children receive a full-time education from the age of five years. Most parents prefer to take their children with them abroad, but in some countries we do not permit staff to take their children either for health or security reasons. In others, local schools of an acceptable standard are not available. It is longstanding practice that the FCO helps staff meet their potentially conflicting obligations by providing financial support for their children's education in the UK where staff choose this, or are obliged to do so given local conditions in the country to which they are posted. Continuity of education is also an important factor, particularly at secondary level.
	The FCO refunds standard term fees up to a ceiling which is reviewed annually. The maximum amount the FCO will pay is determined by an independent survey conducted by ECA International, which is used by public and private sector employers whose staff work across the world. Various factors, including availability of places (sometimes at short notice) and proximity of other family members, influence which schools staff choose for their children. The current ceiling amounts per term are £8,577 for a senior boarder and £7,539 for a junior boarding pupil. Where staff opt to send their children to more expensive schools staff meet the difference in cost.
	We cannot provide details of payments made in connection with the schools, numbering several hundred, attended by staff children in the UK and overseas. It is our policy to avoid disclosures that could identify individual members of staff and their families.

JUSTICE

Animal Welfare: Crime

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will give consideration to making so-called animal crush images illegal by bringing forward proposals to amend the Sexual Offences Act.

Crispin Blunt: No. The appropriate prosecution to be brought in these circumstances is under animal welfare legislation, including the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which provides various offences in respect of causing suffering to an animal.

Dangerous Driving: Convictions

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations he has received from (a) organisations representing cyclists, (b) organisations promoting road safety and (c) individuals on the conviction of individuals found to be guilty of (i) causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving and (ii) causing death by dangerous driving in the cases of road traffic accidents in which a cyclist has been killed.

Crispin Blunt: Since May 2010 the Ministry of Justice has received a number of letters from individuals directly and via their Members of Parliament, on the subject of sentencing for causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving and on causing death by dangerous driving, some of which relate to incidents involving cyclists.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the sentencing of car drivers found to be responsible for road traffic accidents involving the (a) injury and (b) death of cyclists.

Crispin Blunt: There is regular communication between Ministry of Justice and Department for Transport Ministers about policy of mutual interest, although not specifically on the subject of road traffic incidents involving cyclists. Careless driving can destroy lives and have a devastating effect on victims and their families, which is why making roads safer is our priority. Anyone who causes death by careless driving will face a prison sentence of up to five years, and will automatically lose their licence if they are found guilty.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the (a) type and (b) length of sentences awarded for offences of causing death by careless driving; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: The offence of causing death by careless driving was introduced by the Road Safety Act 2006. This legislation will be formally reviewed in due course as part of the coalition Government's commitment to the post-legislative scrutiny process. The offence of causing death by careless driving carries a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment together with a compulsory minimum of 12 months driving disqualification.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations he has received from (a) organisations representing cyclists, (b) organisations promoting road safety and (c) individuals on the (i) type and (ii) length of sentence awarded for offences of causing death by careless driving.

Crispin Blunt: Since May 2010 the Ministry of Justice has received a number of letters from individuals directly and via their Members of Parliament on the subject of sentencing for causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the consideration given to previous driving offences in determining sentences for those convicted of (a) causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving, (b) causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs and (c) causing death by dangerous driving.

Crispin Blunt: Sentencing decisions in individual cases are a matter for the independent judiciary, having regard to the facts of each offence. Section 143(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 requires courts to treat a previous conviction as an aggravating factor if it can reasonably do so, having regard to its relevance to the current offence and the time elapsed since conviction.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department will meet members of the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group to discuss sentencing guidelines for dangerous driving and other traffic offences.

Crispin Blunt: Sentencing guidelines are issued by the Sentencing Council for England and Wales. The council is independent from Government. As a result it would not be useful for me or for other Ministry of Justice Ministers to meet with the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group to discuss the detail of sentencing guidelines.

Debt Collection

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his Department's definition of hardship is; and what recent discussions he has had with (a) ministerial colleagues and (b) local authorities to ensure that an agreed definition is in place in respect of enforcement under relevant statutes for (i) fines, (ii) sanctions, (iii) penalties, (iv) overpayments and (v) debts.

Kenneth Clarke: There is no common definition across Government of hardship and I have had no such discussions regarding the enforcement of fines, sanctions, penalties, overpayments and debts.
	Nevertheless, the personal circumstances of an individual are taken into account in specific situations, in ensuring that sentences are proportionate and in enforcement.

Defamation

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to strengthen the test of substantial harm in the Defamation Bill.

Jonathan Djanogly: We have taken account of the views expressed in relation to the substantial harm test in responses to consultation on the draft Defamation Bill and in the report of the Joint Committee on the draft Bill. We will set out our conclusions on this and other issues in the Government response to the report of the Joint Committee, which we aim to publish shortly.

Departmental Food

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of food purchased by his Department was produced in the UK in each of the last five years.

Jonathan Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) procures in accordance with EU legislation and is committed to the Government Buying Standards (GBS) for food. In line with the coalition agreement the Department ensures that food procured meets British standards of production wherever this can be achieved without increasing overall cost.
	The proportion of food (by value) purchased by the Ministry of Justice that was produced in the UK for each of the last five years for which figures are available is as follows:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 
			 MOJ 65.5 67 61 61 n/a 
			 NOMS 37 49 50 50 44 
			 Notes: 1. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) covers MOJ HQ and Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) for contracted out food service provision. Figures for 2010- 11 are currently not available due to the contract being awarded in late 2010. Consolidated figures for 2010-11 and 2011-12 are due to be completed at the end of this financial year. 2. National Offender Management Services figures relate to the actual percentage of spend (value) on direct food costs for prisoner meal requirements.

Departmental Training

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many away days his Department has held since May 2010; what the location was of each such away day; how many staff attended; and what the cost was of each such event.

Jonathan Djanogly: “Away days” are an integral part of business activity, often used as part of training, business planning and development and for communicating significant business changes to large numbers of staff in a timely and consistent fashion. Wherever possible, such events occur at departmental facilities, which incur no additional cost. However, due to the constraints on availability of suitable accommodation, on some occasions such meetings may take place off-site. Given the significant savings being delivered by the Department and the stringent financial controls in place, such discretionary expenditure is only permitted where there is a strong business case to support it, which has been approved at director level.
	Because such events are managed locally by business areas, for the period from May 2010 to date, the Ministry has no central records on the total number of away days, their locations, the number of staff in attendance or the costs involved. To establish the number, location and costs of away day events would require a Ministry-wide survey of all its local business areas. A Ministry-wide survey would therefore amount to a significant exercise and incur a disproportionate cost.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Children: Vaccination

Michael Ellis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many children have received vaccinations funded by his Department in (a) Africa and (b) globally since May 2010.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development supports vaccination programmes through a variety of channels including funding to the GAVI Alliance, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, core funding to UNICEF and the World Health Organisation and through the Department's bilateral country programmes.
	Through our commitment to the GAVI Alliance alone, UK funding has supported the vaccination of over 11 million children since May 2010. Through Britain's increased support to Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) c.57 million children have been vaccinated globally since May 2010, 28 million in Africa.
	This is additional to our bilateral support which funds a wide range of activities in the health sector in many countries, including training of health workers, policy development, community mobilisation, campaign planning—all of which enable more children to receive life saving vaccinations.
	Looking forward, our commitments will fund the vaccination of 45 million children over the next two years against polio (GPEI); vaccinate over 80 million children through GAVI over the next five years including against diarrhoea and pneumonia; and vaccinate 45 million children against measles over the next four years through the Measles Initiative, preventing 1.2 million measles cases and 24,000 measles deaths in each year of the programme.

Departmental Data Protection

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many cases of (a) data loss and (b) breaches of confidentiality occurred in his Department in 2011.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) had no cases where data with a security classification was lost during 2011.
	DFID did not have any incidents resulting in breaches of confidentiality during 2011.

Departmental Recruitment

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on (a) recruitment services and (b) executive search agencies in each month since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not used any recruitment services since May 2010 and has used only two executive search agencies since during this period.
	The Cabinet Office used the executive search agency Russell Reynolds in the recruitment of a new Permanent Secretary and at a cost of £7,076.03 in March 2011.
	DFID also used the Executive Search Agency, Devex as part of a campaign to recruit new professional advisers on front line delivery work in the UK and in our offices based overseas. Devex are a specialist international development recruitment agency. The cost of the Devex search was £5,097.10 in September 2011.

EU Aid

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what steps he plans to take to increase the proportion of the EU budget which is spent on Millennium Development Goal-focused programmes rather than neighbourhood programmes;
	(2)  what progress he has made on his strategy for increasing the proportion of the EU budget which is spent on (a) international co-operation and (b) Millennium Development Goals rather than neighbourhood programmes in negotiations on the multi-annual financial framework.

Stephen O'Brien: The European Commission has released proposals for the European Union (EU) budget for the period 2014 to 2020. Member states are now beginning detailed consideration of these. The UK welcomes the proposed better focus of Development Cooperation on the poorest and most vulnerable countries with the EU relationship with emerging economies and other better off countries moving to a new partnership arrangement.
	Support to Europe's neighbourhood remains a key priority for the UK, not least as an essential element to our response to the Arab Spring. The UK welcomes the introduction of rigorous conditions that will ensure that the EU provides funding only in return for progress on political and economic reforms.

Olympic Games 2012

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many invitations to attend events at the London 2012 Olympics (a) he, (b) other Ministers in his Department and (c) senior officials in his Department have accepted; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: Details of hospitality received by Ministers, special advisers and the most senior officials at the Department for International Development are published on a quarterly basis and will be available for July-September 2012 in due course.

CABINET OFFICE

Civil Service Pensions

John Spellar: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent discussions he has had on pensions for senior civil servants; and if he will make a statement.

Francis Maude: On 20 December I published the Heads of Agreement on reforming the civil service pension scheme.
	This followed months of intensive discussions that have taken place at both ministerial and official level. Discussions with the civil service trade unions are continuing on the remaining details.

Voluntary Sector

Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the likely change in the number of jobs in the voluntary sector in the next three years.

Nick Hurd: Unfortunately the voluntary sector can not be immune from the cuts that the Government have been forced to undertake.
	I meet with representatives from the sector regularly and fully appreciate the concern about job losses. We firmly believe that our policies will create sustainable, long-term opportunities for the sector, not least in public services, and we are working hard to make those opportunities available as quickly as possible.

Public Bodies Act 2011

Claire Perry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment he has made of the likely effects of implementation of the Public Bodies Act 2011.

Francis Maude: The Public Bodies Act gives Government the power to make significant reforms to public bodies, increasing accountability and efficiency. Our proposals will abolish, merge and reform approximately 500 public bodies.
	A three-year review programme will ensure the public bodies landscape continues to become more accountable, streamlined and transparent.

Public Bodies Act 2011

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment he has made of the likely effects of implementation of the Public Bodies Act 2011.

Francis Maude: The Public Bodies Act gives Government the power to make significant reforms to public bodies, increasing accountability and efficiency. Our proposals will abolish, merge and reform approximately 500 public bodies.
	A three-year review programme will ensure the public bodies landscape continues to become more accountable, streamlined and transparent.

Consultancy

Chris Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department spent on consultancy in the last year for which figures are available.

Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (Chi Onwurah) in oral questions today.

Employment

Therese Coffey: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many pensioners were employed in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11;
	(2)  how many people aged 18 or under were employed in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2012
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions.
	The available information is provided in the following table. Pensioners are assumed to be those people at, or above, the state pension age, which is the age at which people become eligible to receive the state pension. The estimates provided are for the latest quarter, July to September 2011, and the same quarter in the two preceding years. The figures take into account the gradual increase in state pension age for women which started in April 2010. The estimates for people aged 18 or under relate to people aged 16 to 18 inclusive. No data are available for people aged under 16.
	The estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and are not seasonally adjusted. As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
	
		
			 People in employment by age. Three months ending September, 2009 to 2011. United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			 Thousand 
			  People at state pension age (1)  and above People aged 16 to 18 
			 2009 1,396 781 
			 2010 1,463 718 
			 2011 *1,381 *648 
			 (1) Between April 2010 and November 2018 the state pension age for women is gradually increasing from 60 to 65. From April 2010 to April 2016 the state pension age for women is increasing by one month every two months. Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key: * 0 = CV<5%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered precise ** 5 = CV <10%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** 10 = CV <20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered acceptable **** CV ? 20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes CV = Coefficient of Variation Note: It should be noted that the above estimates exclude people in most types of communal establishment (e.g. hotels, boarding houses, hostels mobile home sites etc.). Source: Labour Force Survey

EDUCATION

Free School Meals

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the Children's Commissioner for England report, A Child Rights Impact Assessment of the Welfare Reform Bill, what assessment he has made of the (a) costs, and (b) (i) short- and (ii) long-term effects on child poverty levels of implementation of the recommendation to extend free school meals eligibility to all children in households receiving universal credit.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education is considering options for new eligibility criteria for free school meals once universal credit is introduced. These options will take account of the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC)'s independent review of passported benefits. We will consult on free school meal eligibility proposals during 2012, in time for the introduction of universal credit from October 2013.
	The consultation will include analysis of the impact of eligibility changes on children and families.

Free School Meals

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to announce the eligibility rules for free school meals following introduction of universal credit.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education is considering options for new eligibility criteria for free school meals once universal credit is introduced. These options will take account of the Social Security Advisory Committee's independent review of passported benefits. We will consult on free school meal eligibility proposals during 2012, and make an announcement in good time for the introduction of universal credit from October 2013.

GCSE

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many children have received A* to C grades in GCSE (a) mathematics, (b) English, (c) geography and (d) sciences in High Peak constituency in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many children in High Peak constituency were awarded A* to C grades in GCSE (a) history and (b) a language in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The information requested can be found in the following table.
	
		
			 Numbers and percentages of pupils (1, 2)  at the end of key stage 4 achieving A*-C grades in English, mathematics, geography, history, science (3)  and language (4)  GCSEs (5, 6)  in high peak constituency (7) , East Midlands region (8)  and England (9) . Years: 2006-10 Coverage: England 
			 Numbers and Percentages of KS4 pupils achieving A*-C grade in 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 
			 English      
			 High Peak (Numbers) 725 788 720 733 733 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 62.2 63.9 61.0 65.0 68.4 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 29,367 30,894 31,954 31,720 33,806 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 55.6 57.2 59.8 61.4 65.3 
			 England (Numbers) 338,325 349,086 357,982 358,135 382,870 
			 England (Percentages) 57.1 58.3 60.1 62.1 66.5 
			 Maths      
			 High Peak (Numbers) 598 701 675 666 657 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 51.3 56.8 57.2 59.1 61.3 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 26,733 28,168 29,110 29,786 31,598 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 50.6 52.2 54.5 57.7 61.0 
			 England (Numbers) 307,025 322,941 334,905 338,133 360,233 
			 England (Percentages) 51.8 53.9 56.2 58.7 62.5 
			 Geography      
			 High Peak (Numbers) 224 254 263 206 179 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 19.2 20.6 22.3 18.3 16.7 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 8,686 8,875 8,284 7,825 7,744 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 16.5 16.4 15.5 15.1 15.0 
			 England (Numbers) 103,173 103,592 101,350 97,759 98,098 
			 England (Percentages) 17.4 17.3 17.0 17.0 17.0 
			 History      
		
	
	
		
			 High Peak (Numbers) 209 192 213 239 214 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 17.9 15.6 18.0 212 20.0 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 9,797 9,574 9,625 9,217 9,372 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 18.6 17.7 18.0 17.8 18.1 
			 England (Numbers) 115,273 114,742 116,404 114,985 117,204 
			 England (Percentages) 19.5 19.2 19.5 19,9 20.3 
			 Science (3)      
			 High Peak (Numbers) 579 593 686 732 689 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 49.7 48.1 58.1 65.0 64.3 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 24,621 25,260 29,325 30,717 30,110 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 46.6 46.8 54.9 59.5 58.1 
			 England (Numbers) 274,989 280,096 328,703 348,685 345,156 
			 England (Percentages) 46.4 46.8 55.2 60.5 59.9 
			 Language (4)      
			 High Peak (Numbers) 262 290 214 255 225 
			 High Peak (Percentages) 22.5 23.5 18.1 22.6 21.0 
			 East Midlands (Numbers) 15,641 14,687 14,151 14,225 13,785 
			 East Midlands (Percentages) 29.6 27.2 26.5 27.5 26.6 
			 England (Numbers) 172,377 163,393 161,228 160,963 160,472 
			 England (Percentages) 29.1 27.3 27.1 27.9 27.9 
			 (1) Figures do not include pupils recently arrived from overseas. (2) Figures include all maintained schools (including CTCs and academies). (3) Pupils who achieved A*-C at GCSE in at least one of the following subjects: Physics, chemistry, biological sciences, single science, double science, additional science. Core science and applied science for the years 2008/09 and 2009/10 and for physics, chemistry, biological sciences, single science, double science for the years 2005/06 to 2007/08. (4) Pupils who achieved A*-C at GCSE in at least one of the following subjects: French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Modern Greek, Portuguese, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Gujarati, Japanese. Modern Hebrew, Panjabi, Polish, Russian. Turkish. Urdu, Persian, Danish and Hindi. (5) Full GCSEs only have been included (Full GCSEs, double awards, accredited international certificates and their predecessor iGCSEs). Figures from 2006-2009 exclude iGCSEs, 2010 figures include accredited iGCSEs. (6) Including attempts and achievements by these pupils in previous academic years. (7) Parliamentary constituency figures are based on the postcode of the school. (8) Regional figures are based on the region of the local authority maintaining the school. (9) England figures are the sum of all local authority figures. Source: National Pupil Database

Members: Correspondence

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he expects to reply to the letter of 21 December 2011 from the hon. Member for Birmingham, Northfield on Cadbury Sixth Form College.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools, Lord Hill of Oareford, replied to the hon. Member's letter of 21 December 2011, concerning Cadbury Sixth Form College's funding position on 1 February 2012.

Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to introduce teaching about healthy relationships in schools.

Nick Gibb: Sex and relationship education (SRE) is usually taught as part of personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education in schools. Schools must also have regard to SRE guidance produced by the Secretary of State for Education.
	The Government are reviewing PSHE education in order to strengthen the quality of teaching about relationships, positive parenting and sexual consent. The Government believe that all pupils should benefit from high-quality sex and relationships education at school; that schools have a clear role in reinforcing the information that children receive from parents, and in providing them with a safe and supportive environment in which to develop the knowledge they need to make wise and informed choices later in life.
	The PSHE review will help to determine the core body of knowledge and awareness that pupils should be expected to acquire at school through PSHE education. It will be up to schools, in consultation with parents, to decide what more pupils need to know.

Primary Education: Academies

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which primary schools are under consideration to be required to become academies; and whether any such schools are in Lambeth.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 6 February 2012
	We have been clear that we consider academy status to be the best way to improve schools that are consistently underperforming. We do pupils an injustice if we do not tackle entrenched underperformance where it exists.
	The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), announced in his speech to the National College of School Leadership on 16 June 2011, that we would start work on turning around 200 of the most consistently underperforming primary schools. This would be achieved by finding new academy sponsors for them so that most can reopen from September 2012. We intend to explore academy options with three Lambeth primary schools.

Reading: Primary Education

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what support his Department plans to provide to teachers to administer the proposals on phonics screening at age six; and whether any such support will include information on how to interpret the results.

Nick Gibb: We will provide written guidance and video training materials to support teachers administering and marking the phonics screening check. We will also make information available to support schools in interpreting the results.

School Leaving: Basic Skills

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment his Department has made of the level of literacy and numeracy of (a) primary school leavers and (b) secondary school leavers from Harlow constituency in each of the last 10 years.

Nick Gibb: The information requested for the years 2004/05 to 2010/11 for Key Stage 2 and 2005/06 to 2009/10 for Key Stage 4 is given in the following tables. Figures for earlier years can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	(a) Primary school leavers
	
		
			 Achievements at the expected level (1 ) by pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 in Harlow parliamentary constituency (2) , East of England (3)  and England (4) . Years: 2005- 11 (5) . Coverage: England (6) 
			 Percentage of KS2 pupils achieving expected level in 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 English        
			 Harlow 69 76 75 76 76 72 77 
			 East of England 80 80 80 81 80 79 80 
			 England 79 79 80 81 80 81 82 
			         
			 Maths        
			 Harlow 69 70 74 74 77 73 78 
			 East of England 75 76 77 78 78 79 79 
			 England 75 76 77 79 79 80 81 
			 (1) Includes pupils who achieved Level 4 or above. Level 4 is the expected level of achievement for pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 (2) Parliamentary constituency figures are based on the postcode of the school. (3) Regional figures are based on the region of the local authority maintaining the school. (4) England figures are the sum of all local authority figures and match the England totals in the local authority tables of the Statistical First Release: http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001047/index.shtml These may differ to the England totals in the national tables in the Statistical First Release. (5) Data is final data for all years apart from 2011 which is based on amended data. (6) Includes LA maintained schools and academies. Figures do not include pupils recently arrived from overseas. Source: National Pupil Database 
		
	
	East of England and England figures for 2007 to 2011 are taken from table 23 in the Statistical First Release "National Curriculum Assessments at Key Stage 2 in England 2010/2011 (revised)", published at:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001047/index.shtml
	(b) Secondary school leavers
	
		
			 Percentages of pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieving A*-C grades in English and mathematics GCSEs (1, 2)  in Harlow constituency (3) , East of England (4)  and England (5) (. ) Years: 2006- 10 (6) . Coverage: England (7) 
			 Percentage of KS4 pupils achieving A*-C grade in GCSE 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 
			 English      
			 Harlow 47.3 44.4 48.4 50.9 51.7 
			 East of England 60.0 60.3 61.5 62.7 67.0 
			 England 57.1 58.3 60.1 62.1 66.5 
			       
			 Maths      
			 Harlow 39.3 41.6 47.2 48.7 53.9 
			 East of England 54.7 57.0 58.9 60.6 63.9 
			 England 51.8 54.0 56.3 58.8 62.6 
			 (1 )Full GCSEs only have been included (full GCSEs, double awards, accredited international certificates and their predecessor iGCSEs and AS-levels). Figures from 2006-2009 exclude iGCSEs, 2010 figures include accredited iGCSEs. (2) Including attempts and achievements by these pupils in previous academic years. (3) Parliamentary constituency figures are based on the postcode of the school. (4) Regional figures are based on the region of the local authority maintaining the school. (5 )England figures are the sum of all local authority figures. (6) Data is final data for all years. (7) Includes LA maintained schools and academies. Figures do not include pupils recently arrived from overseas. Source: National Pupil Database

Schools: English Baccalaureate

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding was allocated to schools in Dartford constituency for the teaching of the International Baccalaureate in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: Institutions delivering 16 to 19 education and training receive a single allocation based primarily on the total volume and various types (for example the post-16 International Baccalaureate (IB), A levels, vocational qualifications etc.) of education delivered to their students the previous academic year (i.e. on a lagged basis). We do not specify which qualifications institutions should use their funding for, as it is for the individual institution to use its funding allocation as it sees appropriate in delivering its curriculum during the academic year.
	In the Dartford constituency(1), only Dartford grammar school has delivered the post-16 IB to any significant extent(2) at any time in the last five academic years (2007/08 to 2011-12). The figures in the following table are an estimate of how much of the post-16 funding allocated to Dartford grammar was used by the school to support the IB. This is based on the school's total allocation split according to how many students they recorded as taking the IB as part of their autumn census return for the academic year in question.
	
		
			 Dartford grammar school (3) 
			 £ 
			  2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 
			 IB portion of 16 to 19 programme funding allocation(4) 513,000 1,186,000 1,218,000 (5)— 
			 (1) The Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) does not make allocations to schools by constituency. Therefore, the data provided are based on a proxy used to identify delivery in the Dartford constituency. (2) The only other delivery noted on the census was for Leigh Technology Academy. This was in 2007/08 only and represented less than 2% of their overall delivery—given the negligible amount of IB provision delivered, this has been excluded from the figures provided. (3) Dartford grammar first started delivering the IB programme in the 2008/09 academic year. As such, the data provided are from that point onwards. (4) Portion of total allocation based on delivery element (excludes entitlement, transitional protection, teacher's pension and Additional Learner Support funding). Rounded to nearest £000. (5) Not yet available.

Science: GCSE

Chris Skidmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of pupils (a) eligible and (b) not eligible for free school meals were entered for GCSEs in the three separate sciences in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of all pupils entered for a single science award GCSE were eligible for free school meals in each of the last 10 years.

Nick Gibb: The information requested for the years 2008 to 2010 is presented in the following table, earlier years can be provided only at disproportionate cost. Information on 2011 key stage 4 attainment by characteristics will be published on 9 February in the publication “GCSE and Equivalent Attainment by Pupil Characteristics in England, 2010/11” which will be available here:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s001057/index.shtml
	
		
			 Number and percentage of pupils entered for GCSEs in biological science, chemistry, physics and single science (core science) by eligibility for free school meals: Years 2008-10 (final)—Coverage: England 
			  Biological Sciences Chemistry Physics Core science 
			  FSM eligible Not FSM eligible FSM eligible Not FSM eligible FSM eligible Not FSM eligible FSM eligible Not FSM eligible 
			 2008         
			 Number 3,071 57,872 2,225 51,592 2,159 51,157 57,270 420,459 
			 Percentage  95 4 96 4 96 12 88 
			 2009         
			 Number 3,869 69,795 3,095 64,730 3,034 64,709 54,824 387,127 
			 Percentage 5 95 5 95 4 96 12 88 
			 2010         
			 Number 5,818 94,096 5,242 91,105 5,244 91,102 49,921 343,344 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage 6 94 5 95 5 95 13 87 
			 Notes: 1. Single science is taken to mean “Core Science” only and no other science award. 2. Figures cover pupils in maintained mainstream schools only. 3. Figures do not take into account discounting where qualification content may overlap.

Special Educational Needs: Hearing Impairment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of children in schools participating in the Year 1 phonics screening checked pilots were not checked because of (a) a recognised special educational need or disability and (b) any other reason.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not hold the information in the exact format requested. In the pilot of the Year 1 phonics screening check, teachers were asked to indicate whether a pupil was disapplied from the check, but they were not required to provide a reason for the disapplication.
	Of the 9,310 pupils at schools participating in the pilot, 191 (2.1%) were disapplied. There were also 321 (3.4%) pupils who were absent.
	In the national implementation of the check in 2012, it will be a requirement for schools to explain to parents why any child has been disapplied from the check prior to the week in which it is administered.

Teachers: Disciplinary Proceedings

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers in each English region have been (a) disciplined and (b) dismissed for disciplinary offences related to inappropriate use of the internet in the last year.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Teachers: Sick Leave

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to publish information on teacher sickness absence in academic year 2010-11; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Teacher sickness absence figures for the academic year 2010/11 are expected to be published in April 2012 in the School Workforce in England, November 2011 Statistical First Release. The exact date will be notified on the Department's website at the following link in March:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics

Teachers: Training

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of people aged between 21 and 25 who entered the teaching profession through (a) PGCEs, (b) graduate teacher programmes and (c) Teach First in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 6 February 2012
	The available information on the number of people aged under 25 or 25 to 29 who entered the teaching profession by gaining Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) through (a) Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) courses, (b) the Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) and (c) Teach First in the last five academic years for which data are available can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 Number of people aged under 25 or 25 to 29 achieving QTS through PGCE, GTP or Teach First routes by academic year. Coverage: England 
			  PGCE GTP Teach First 
			 Academic year Under 25 25-29 Under 25 25-29 Under 25 25-29 
			 2005/06 9,370 6,560 840 1,540 120 30 
			 2006/07 9,280 6,360 1,030 1,670 170 40 
			 2007/08 9,010 6,180 1,040 1,670 220 50 
			 2008/09 9,230 6,070 1,150 1,670 300 60 
			 2009/10 9,920 6,640 1,050 1,660 360 80 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Age is correct as of the start of the final year of study. 3. PGCE includes postgraduate courses undertaken at universities and other higher education institutions, school-centred initial teacher training and Open University but exclude employment-based routes. Source: TDA Performance Profiles

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Agriculture: Subsidies

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs withholding payments under the (a) Single Payment Scheme and (b) Rural Development Programme for England to (i) landowners who have not registered their land with the Land Registry and (ii) offshore trusts; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: Payments under the single payment scheme and rural development programme for England are a matter for the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs Spelman). However, I understand that the EU scheme rules do not give member states powers to make payments under either the scheme or programme conditional on landowners registering their land with the land registry and that payments under the scheme and programme depend on the farmer having land at their disposal, not on the nature of the ownership. For this reason there are no plans for the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to meet to discuss the issue raised by the hon. Member.

Banks: Third Sector

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had on the role of banks held in public ownership in achieving socially beneficial objectives.

Mark Hoban: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Treasury Department.
	Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations, overseas governments and ministries as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Business: Carbon Emissions

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the number of small businesses that will cease trading as a result of the ending of the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and Community Energy Saving Programme schemes;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the number of job losses that will result from the ending of the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target and Community Energy Saving Programme schemes to insulate homes.

Gregory Barker: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Energy and Climate Change.
	The Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) and Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) will transition to the new Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation (ECO) at the end of 2012. We are considering responses to the recent public consultation on Green Deal and ECO, and detailed consideration of the impact this transition has on the industry, including on small businesses, will be included in the final version of the impact assessment accompanying the Government's response. We currently estimate that Government programmes to promote energy efficiency will support around 65,000 insulation sector jobs in 2015, which represents an increase from the present total of 27,000 jobs.

Copyright

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has quantified the monetary (a) costs and (b) benefits to the principal affected groups of implementing options 1 to 5 in his Department's consultation paper on the Hargreaves review.

Norman Lamb: The initial impact assessments published with the current consultation on copyright were developed on the basis of available evidence from a range of sources, including the submissions made to the Hargreaves review. The Government are now seeking more detailed evidence on the costs and benefits to all parties who could be affected by the proposals, through public consultation.

Copyright

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has any plans to review the economic assessment of the proposals contained in his Department's consultation paper on the Hargreaves review has been carried out.

Norman Lamb: The initial impact assessments published with the current consultation on copyright will be reviewed and revised in both the light of the ongoing Government research programme and further evidence of costs and benefits collected from stakeholders during the consultation process.

Copyright

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will (a) publish and (b) place in the Library copies of the responses his Department has received to date to its consultation on the Hargreaves review.

Norman Lamb: I confirm that, subject to resolution of any specific requests for confidentiality, following the completion of the consultation the Government will publish all formal responses in accordance with normal practice.

Departmental Procurement

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent procuring products and services in 2010-11.

Norman Lamb: In 2010-11 the Department spent a total of £202,442,693 procuring goods and services. This figure includes the amount spent on accommodation and facilities management.

Higher Education: Access

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the devolved administrations on policy issues relating to the widening of access to higher education; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: Neither I nor the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), have had recent discussions with Ministers of the Devolved Administrations on policy issues relating to widening access to higher education.
	I am always willing to meet with Ministers of the Devolved Administrations to discuss issues of higher education policy.
	Officials of the Department for Business, innovation and Skills continue to make regular contact with officials of the Devolved Administrations about the development of higher education reforms announced in the 2011 White Paper, including on widening access to higher education.

Higher Education: Admissions

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Higher Education Funding Council for England and (b) Universities UK on steps to encourage adult students into higher education; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: I and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), meet regularly with the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) and Universities UK (UUK) to discuss a range of issues surrounding higher education including widening participation and fair access.
	In the guidance from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) to the Office of Fair Access (OFFA) issued in February 2011 the Government said it wanted to support mature students, that it would like institutions to consider such students within their overall approach to access, and would like OFFA to take account of their efforts in considering their access agreements. For the first time, we are making loans available to part time students to meet tuition costs.

Land Registry

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when the Land Registry will be moved from the Ministry of Justice to his Department; and what the cost will be.

Norman Lamb: The Land Registry transferred to this Department on 18 July 2011 in response to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's announcement that, in order to enable the development of a proposition for the establishment of a Public Data Corporation, responsibility for HM Land Registry, the Meteorological Office, and Ordnance Survey, would transfer to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills from the Secretaries of State for Justice, Defence, and Communities and Local Government respectively.
	There were no material external costs involved in the change. Estimates of allocated internal time suggest an internal time cost of circa £200,000, albeit these costs are of course fixed in nature and hence no material incremental costs were incurred.

Student Loans Company: Pay

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with Ministers in the Scottish Government on the terms and conditions offered to the chief executive of the Student Loans Company and the tax arrangements associated with his pay package.

David Willetts: In line with arrangements set out in the Framework Document between the Student Loans Company (SLC) and the four UK Government Administrations, the appointment and remuneration package for SLC's chief executive was approved by Ministers in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills following consultation with and agreement by Scottish Ministers in December 2010.

Student Loans Company: Public Appointments

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the appointment of the chief executive of the Student Loans Company will be a joint appointment between HM Government and the Scottish Government.

David Willetts: The chief executive of the Student Loans Company is not a ministerial appointment. The Student Loans Company's Board is responsible for appointing the chief executive subject to agreement by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills and Scottish Ministers and following consultation with the devolved Administrations in Wales and Northern Ireland.

Students: Debts

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the level of student debt of adult learners who progress to higher education (a) after a further education student loan funded access to higher education course and (b) immediately after secondary education.

John Hayes: Further education loans will be introduced for the 2013/14 academic year. We estimate, based on figures for the average cost per enrolment of an Access to Higher Education course in 2010/11 that the average loan for such a course undertaken by someone aged 24 or above in 2013/14 will be around £2,500. For those participants who are under 24 such courses will remain grant funded.
	For all those who begin a three-year degree course in 2014/15 and take up both a fee and maintenance loan every year, the additional amount borrowed could on average be around £38,000.

Students: Finance

Therese Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council on future funding of post-graduate research fellowships.

David Willetts: There has not been any recent discussion between the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) on postgraduate research fellowships. EPSRC does not fund postgraduate fellowships, but it does provide support for PhD studentships across the Engineering and Physical Sciences as well as postdoctoral fellowships in some research areas (e.g. Mathematical Sciences and Theoretical Physics).